The Election Commission on Monday issued notification for the seven MLC posts from the Assembly quota. Five MLCs are retiring on March 29, while two more have died before ending their term.

YSR Congress MLC Challa Bhageeratha Reddy died in November 2021, and TDP MLC Batchula Arjunudu died this year.

The State Legislature will receive nominations from the candidates till March 13. The officials would scrutinise the nominations on March 14 and the last day for withdrawals is March 17. The EC would hold elections on March 23 if required.

The ruling YSR Congress had enough strength to win all the seven seats unopposed. The party had already named its candidates for the vacancies. It had nominated Pothula Suneetha, who is retiring along with others on March 29, for another term.

Among those retiring, there are five MLCs from the YSR Congress and two from the opposition TDP. Nara Lokesh and Batchula Arjunudu are retiring from the TDP. Arjunudu died on February 3.

From the ruling YSR Congress, its sitting members, Gangula Prabhakar Reddy, Dokka Manikya Varaprasad, P V V Suryanarayana Raju, Pothula Suneetha are retiring, while Challa Bhageeratha Reddy died in November 2021. However, Pothula Suneetha and Suryanarayana Raju were renominated by the ruling party.

The ruling YSR Congress had already named its candidates for all the seven seats as the opposition TDP has no strength to field its candidates.

The YSR Congress fielded Suryanarayana Raju, Suneetha, Kola Guruvulu, Bommi Israel, Jayamangala Venkata Ramana, Chandragiri Yesurathnam and Marri Rajasekhar, for the seven vacancies.