Tag: voter turnout

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Highlights: Phase 4 sees over 62% polling percentage until 5 pm

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Lok Sabha Election 2024 Highlights: A voter turnout of more than 62% was recorded till 5 pm on Monday in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha polls in 96 constituencies spread over 10 states and Union Territories amid incidents of violence in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal.

Jammu and Kashmir witnessed the lowest voting percentage till 5 pm with 35.75% of voters exercising their franchise, while West Bengal recorded the highest with 75.66%.

Among other states, Andhra Pradesh recorded 68.04% polling, Bihar 54.14%, Jharkhand 63.14%, Madhya Pradesh 68.01%, Maharashtra 52.49%, Odisha 62.96%, Telangana 61.16% and Uttar Pradesh 56.35%.

The electoral fate of several prominent candidates like Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Union minister Giriraj Singh, TMC’s firebrand leader Mohua Moitra and AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi will be decided on Monday, May 13, as polling is underway in 96 Lok Sabha constituencies across 10 states and Union Territories in the fourth phase of the general elections. Voting is being simultaneously held in all 175 Assembly seats in Andhra Pradesh, which is witnessing a triangular contest involving ruling YSRC, the Congress-led INDIA bloc and the NDA, comprising the BJP, Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP and Pawan Kalyan-led Jana Sena Party (JSP).

As many as 28 legislative assembly seats of Odisha are also going to polls in this phase. A total of 1,717 candidates are in the fray in the Lok Sabha seats and more than 19 lakh polling officials have been deployed at 1.92 lakh polling stations for the over 17.70 crore eligible voters, including 8.73 women, in this round of the seven-phase polls.

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Uttar Pradesh assembly polls: Over 55% voting recorded in sixth phase

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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More than 55 percent voting was recorded in the sixth phase of the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls on Thursday. The prominent faces among the 676 candidates for 57 seats spread across 10 districts in this phase included Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from Gorakhpur Urban and state Congress president Ajay Kumar Lallu from Tamkuhi Raj.

According to tentative figures updated at 7 pm, 55.79 percent polling was recorded. In 2017 assembly polls, the turnout was 56.47 percent in these 57 seats. The final tally will be released by the poll authorities later, officials said.

With this, voting for 349 of the total 403 assembly seats has been completed. The final phase of polling in the remaining 54 seats will be held on March 7. Around 2.15 crore people were eligible to vote in this phase. The voting started at 7 am and continued till 6 pm.

Also Read | BJP ‘influencing’ Manipur polls by ‘paying’ banned rebel groups, accuses Congress

The districts where polling was held on Thursday were Ambedkarnagar, Balrampur, Siddharth Nagar, Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar, Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Deoria and Ballia. In the 2017 assembly polls, the BJP had won 46 of the 57 seats.

Till 5 pm there was about 53.31 percent polling, according to the Election Commission of India’s Turnout app. Additional Chief Electoral Officer (ACEO) BDR Tiwari said that polling was held peacefully in the state.

According to the Home department, Ambedkarnagar recorded 62.66 percent voting, Ballia had 52.01 percent, Balrampur 48.90 percent, Basti 57.20 percent, Deoria 56 percent, Gorakhpur 58.89 percent, Kushinagar 59 percent, Mahrajganj 59.5 percent, Sant Kabir Nagar 52.20 percent and Siddharth Nagar 51.60 percent as per the reports received till 7 pm.

Those who cast their votes in the morning included Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Basic Education Minister Satish Dwivedi, Leader of Opposition Ram Govind Chowdhury, Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party chief Om Prakash Rajbhar, minister Upendra Tiwari and former minister Narad Rai.

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Interacting with reporters after casting his vote, the chief minister said the BJP will get 80 percent votes and the rest 20 percent will get divided among the opposition. The Samajwadi Party pitted the wife of the late Upendra Dutt Shukla, a former BJP leader, against Adityanath. Azad Samaj Party founder Chandrashekhar Azad also contested against the chief minister from Gorakhpur seat.

Swami Prasad Maurya, who was a minister in the Adityanath government and had quit the BJP to join the Samajwadi Party, contested from Fazilnagar where polling was held on Thursday, besides Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly and Samajwadi Party leader Ram Govind Chaudhary from Bansdih. The ministers whose electoral fortunes were sealed in the voting machines in this phase included Surya Pratap Shahi from Pathardeva, Satish Chandra Dwivedi from Itwa, Jai Pratap Singh from Bansi, Shree Ram Chauhan from Khajani and Jai Prakash Nishad from Rudrapur.

The campaigning for this phase had witnessed the political parties going for an all-out attack against each other. Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the BJP’s rivals by tagging them as dynasts, who he claimed can never make India capable or empower Uttar Pradesh and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had rebutted by saying the BJP is only against her family, which did not bow down before it.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav in his electioneering had accused the BJP of hatching a conspiracy of ending reservation and “selling” government entities to the private sector.

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Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election: Poll percentage during five phase voting same as in 2017

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Voters’ turnout in almost two-thirds of the assembly seats during five rounds of polling in Uttar Pradesh is more or less the same as in the 2017 polls, leaving political parties and experts guessing whether it’s pro-incumbency or anti-incumbency votes. A look at the voters’ turnout in the 2019 general elections in the state also doesn’t reflect much of a difference.

While some attribute it to coronavirus, others say voters have tested all the parties in the polls and hence are not enthused by new poll promises made by the competing parties.

Out of the seven-phase elections, the politically important state has completed five rounds and the rest two are lined up on March 3 and March 7. Results will be declared on March 10 along with that of Punjab, Uttrakhand, Goa and Manipur.

The opening phase of the elections on February 10 saw a voter turnout of 62.43 percent in the 58 assembly constituencies in western Uttar Pradesh. It was 63.47 percent in 2017 and 61.84 percent in the last general elections. But, Kairana which had earlier hit the headlines because of reported migration due to bad law and order saw a leap from 69.56 to 75.12 percent voting this time.

Also Read | Uttar Pradesh polls 2022: One election, 4 Akhilesh Yadavs in fray

As per data available with the election office, the second phase of polling on 55 assembly segments on February 14 registered 64.42 percent vis-a-vis 65.53 percent five years back and 63.13 percent in the last Parliamentary elections. The hot seat Rampur of jailed SP leader Azam Khan saw almost a ditto voters’ turnout at 63.92 percent vis-a-vis 63.97 in 2017.

The third phase which saw voting in the Karhal constituency from where Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav is contesting witnessed a 62.28 voting percentage as compared to 62.21 percent five years back and 59.73 in the last general elections. Reports suggest it is the second-highest voting percentage in Mulayam Singh Yadav’s bastion, after 71.4 percent in 1974.

The fourth round on February 23 which saw voting in the state capital Lucknow among others on 59 seats, saw nearly 61.52 percent voting as per voters turnout App of the Election Commission as compared to 62.55 percent in 2017 and 60.3 percent in 2019.

Fifth-round on 61 seats including that in Ayodhya, Prayagraj, Amethi and Raebareli on February 27 witnessed 57.32 percent voting while it was 58.24 in 2017 and 55.31 in 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

For the sixth phase on March 3 which will see voting in the high-profile seat of Gorakhpur Urban from where Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is in the fray, the challenge is to cross the voting percentage of 56.52 in 2017. So is in the last round on March 7 which includes Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency where the 2017 mark was 59.56 percent. It was 57.48 in the last parliamentary polls.

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On voters’ turnout, Yogi Adityanath says it’s more and less the same as last time and it means things are going in the right direction. Former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi, when contacted, told PTI, “I wonder why the voter turnout has not increased this time. It could be because the voters’ education efforts were less this time?”

Sanjay Kumar (Professor and Co-Director of Lokniti, a Research Programme at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies) told PTI, “If you compare with the previous elections, the turnout is not very low. It varies by 1-2 percent.”

“Normally, whenever people decide to change the government, there is an atmosphere about it, which in turn increases the turnout. This was visible in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, as the polling percentage increased as compared to the 2009 elections,” he said.

“There is ‘udaaseentaa’ (indifference) in the minds of the voter (towards voting). Now, whether it is indifference towards anti-incumbency or pro-incumbency, it will be known only after the results are declared,” the psephologist said.

State BJP spokesperson Manish Shukla said, “Irrespective of the voters’ turnout, the BJP voters are coming out of their home and voting for the party. However, the same cannot be said about other political parties, as their voters seem to be inactive. This can be possibly due to the rift within the SP-led alliance.”

Samajwadi Party spokesperson Rajpal Kashyap said that discrepancies in the voter list and people moving out of the state for work after easing in the COVID situation have reduced the polling percentage. “However, the SP is gaining ground in every phase.”

His Congress counterpart Ashok Singh said, “It is a festival of democracy, and the party is contesting with full energy. We will throw surprising results. The slogan ‘ladki hoon, ladh saktee hoon’ has ushered in a political revolution.”

Manoj Goswami (75), a resident of Lucknow central assembly constituency, said, “I did not cast my vote fearing that I will get infected with COVID-19.”

Sushil Kashyap, a tea seller in Lucknow Latouche road says, “We have seen all the parties’ governments. They all are almost the same.”

Amid inertia shown by many voters, the five phases witnessed some pleasant examples. In Prayagraj’s Allahpur, 78-year-old Bhuri Pathak suffering from a hip fracture went to the polling station in an ambulance to exercise her franchise. In Lucknow, a mother who delivered a baby, turned up at a polling booth the next day.

There are over 14.66 lakh first-time voters (18-19 years old) in UP polls this time. Overall more than 52 lakh names of new voters were added for the 2022 polls. The count of total voters in UP polls is over 15.02 crore. Due to the COVID pandemic, the Election Commission has extended voting time by an hour.

For all the latest updates on Assembly Elections 2022, follow our LIVE blog here

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Assembly Election: 60% voting till 5 pm in second phase of Uttar Pradesh polls

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Uttar Pradesh recorded a voter turnout of over 60 percent till 5 pm Monday in the second phase of the assembly elections with another hour to go before polling booths closed. Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari said polling in the state had been peaceful till then.

Polling across 55 assembly constituencies assembly in nine districts got off to a sluggish start at 7 am due to the cold and fog at several places. But the pace picked up after a couple of hours. The constituencies in the second phase are spread across Saharanpur, Bijnor, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Amroha, Budaun, Bareilly and Shahjahanpur districts. Altogether 586 candidates are in the fray in this phase.

Till 5 pm, Saharanpur recorded a turnout of 67.13 percent, Bijnor 61.48, Moradabad 64.88, Sambhal 56.93 percent, Rampur 60.30 percent, Amroha 66.19, Budaun 55.91, Bareilly 57.88 and Shahjahanpur 55.25. The overall turnout till then was 60.44 percent. The same districts had recorded an average turnout of 65.53 percent in the 2017 assembly polls and 63.13 percent in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

A turnout of 62.4 percent was recorded in the first phase of the seven-phase Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls on February 10. The opposition Samajwadi Party alleged that a person voted for the party in Saharanpur but the vote was wrongly recorded for the BJP. Additional Chief Election Officer Brahma Dev Ram Tiwari, however, said the information was found to be false by teams that went to the booth.

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He said the Election Commission has also taken note of another complaint that members of the Yadav community were not allowed to cast their votes. It had found no truth so far in a complaint by BJP leader J P S Rathore, who alleged fake voting by burqa-clad women. “A report has been sought from the district magistrate, Tiwari said.

As the polling got underway, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders appealed to the people to vote in large numbers in the state, as well in Goa and Uttarakhand where single-day polling was being held to elect their assemblies. SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, who has stayed away from campaigning, also sent out a brief video message to voters.

“I appeal that you lend your valuable support to the Samajwadi Party to help it win with a huge mandate,” the 83-year old leader, who is now in Delhi, said. Of the 55 seats in which voting was held in the second phase, the BJP had won 38 in the 2017 assembly polls, the SP bagged 15 and the Congress two.

The SP and the Congress had contested the last assembly elections together. Of the 15 seats then won by the SP, Muslim candidates were elected on 10.

Several areas that went to the polls in this phase have a sizeable Muslim population influenced by the Barelvi and Deoband sects, and are considered strongholds of the SP. Prominent candidates include former minister Dharam Singh Saini who joined the SP shortly before the elections and is trying his luck from Nakur. Uttar Pradesh Finance Minister Suresh Khanna is contesting from Shahjahanpur.

Senior SP leader Mohammad Azam Khan is contesting from his stronghold Rampur and his son Abdullah Azam from the Suar seat. The younger Azam is pitted against Haider Ali Khan, the scion of the Nawabs of Rampur, who is trying his luck on a ticket from the Apna Dal (Sonelal), a BJP ally. He is the grandson of former MP Noor Bano.

UP Minister of State for Jal Shakti Baldev Singh Aulakh is contesting from Bilaspur, Minister of State for Urban Development Mahesh Chandra Gupta from Budaun and Minister of State for Secondary Education Gulab Devi from Chandausi. Former Bareilly mayor Supriya Aron is contesting from Bareilly Cantonment on an SP ticket.

The counting of votes is on March 10.

For all the latest updates on Assembly Elections 2022, follow our LIVE blog here

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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Jharkhand Assembly polls: 64% voter turnout in Phase 1 amid minor clashes; Maoists blow up bridge

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Jharkhand witnessed 64.44 percent polling in the first phase of the vote in the 13 Assembly constituencies on Saturday, which is one per cent more than 63.29 per cent recorded in these seats in the 2014 elections.

Defying the Maoist boycott call, voters queued up in large numbers at polling stations since morning to cast their votes. According to Election Commission final data, the polling per cent was 64.44. The highest polling 71.47 percent was recorded at Lohardagga and the lowest 56.59 percent at the Chatra seat.

Minor clashes were reported between workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress in the Daltanganj Assembly seat. Congress candidate K.N. Triptahy waved his licenced revolver in the air after he was stopped from entering a polling booth. The Election Commission has sought report on the incident and has cancelled his licence.

In an attempt to intimidate voters, Maoists blew up a bridge in Gumla, just before polling began, police said. According to officials, polling has not been affected due to blast.

This bridge ran between Ghaghra-Kathkothwa highway and after Maoists found that their threats to boycott the polling process was not being adhered to by the public, the insurgents carried out the attack.

The 13 seats included Chatra (SC) Gumla (ST) Bishunpur (ST) Lohardaga (ST) Manika (ST) Latehar (SC) Panki, Daltonganj, Bishrampur, Chattarpur (SC) Hussainabad, Garhwa and Bhawnathpur.

The total number of eligible voters is 37,78,963, which include 19,79,991 male, 17,98,966 women voters and five from the third gender.

A total of 189 candidates are in the race, including 15 women out of which a maximum of 28 candidates was in Bhawnathpur Seat and a minimum of nine were fighting from the Chatra seat.

According to election commission official, there are 4,892 booths out of which 4,585 are located in rural areas and another 307 in urban areas.

In the first phase, webcasting facility has been provided at 1,262 booths while the number of ‘Sakhi Booths’ is 121 and model polling booths 417.

This time polling booths have been divided into Maoist and non-Maoist areas on the basis of which 1,097 polling stations are hypersensitive and 461 are sensitive.

Heavy security arrangements have bee made for peaceful polling. Helicopters are being used for airlifting and dropping of the poll officials in difficult terrain and Maoist hit areas.

The important candidates, whose fate will be decided in first phase polling, include Jharkhand Health Minister Ramchandra Chandravanshi, Congress state chief Rameshwar Oraon and former Minister and BJP candidate Bhanu PRatap Shahi.

BJP is fighting on 12 seats and supporting Independent on one seat. The Jharkahnd Mukti Morcha (JMM), Congress, RJD fighting poll in alliance have fielded candidates on four, six three seats respectively.

On nine seats the fight is directly between BJP and JMM, Congress and RJD alliance.

The fight is triangular on three seats — one being Lohardagga, where the fight is between Congress state president Rameshwar Oraon, former state Congress president sitting legislator and now BJP candidate Sukhdeo Bhagat and All Jharkhand Students Union candidate Niru Bhagat.

For the Hussainabad Assembly seat the fight is four-cornered. Here former Minister and NCP candidate Kamlesh is drawing attention of the voters. He was minister in the Madhu Koda Cabinet and went to jail in different scam cases.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Raghubar Das has appealed to voters to vote in large number.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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UP bypolls record low voter turnout at 44.4%

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Polling in the by-elections to 11 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh on Monday recorded a low turnout of 44.47 percent at 5 pm.

Gangoh in Saharanpur recorded the highest polling percentage of 57.8, while the Lucknow Cantt seat recorded the lowest at 27.1 percent.

The polling percentage in Rampur that witnessed a high-powered campaign remained at 39.3, which is comparatively low.

Experts attribute the poor polling percentage, despite pleasant weather throughout the state, to the growing indifference of voters towards the political system.

“The results of the by-elections will not change the complexion of the state Assembly and this could be a reason for the low voter turnout,” said a BJP functionary.

In the UP Legislative Assembly, the BJP currently has 302 members, the Samajwadi Party 47 and the Bahujan Samaj Party 18. The BJP’s ally Apna Dal (Sonelal) has eight legislators, while the Congress has seven MLAs in the House.

ALSO READ | Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2019 LIVE UPDATES: 5.79% polling till 10 am, Fadnavis, Mohan Bhagwat, Sharad Pawar among notable early voters

The by-elections were relatively peaceful and the release issued by the Chief Electoral Officer of the state claimed that there were no cases of violence, bogus voting, impersonation or booth capturing.

The by-elections to 11 Assembly segments were held in Gangoh, Rampur, Iglas (SC), Lucknow Cantonment, Govind Nagar, Manikpur, Pratapgarh, Zaidpur (SC), Jalalpur, Balha (SC) and Ghosi.

Of the 11 seats, the BJP and its ally Apna Dal had won 9 seats while the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party had won one seat each in the previous elections.

The SP, BSP and Congress are contesting all the 11 seats, but their leaders did not campaign as vigorously as the BJP.

-with inputs from agencies

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Himachal Pradesh bypoll: 24 per cent polling till 11:30 am in Pachhad, Dharamshala assembly seats

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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About 24 percent polling was recorded till 11:30 am for the two Assembly seats in Himachal Pradesh, a state election official said.

The voting began at 8 am on Monday at a slow pace which is likely to pick up during the day. The electors may use their right to franchise till 5 pm, the official added.

Long queues are being seen at some of the polling stations.

As many as 82,137 and 74,487 voters are eligible to exercise their right to franchise in Dharamshala and Pachhad respectively, Additional Chief Electoral Officer (Additional CEO) Rupali Thakur said.

The counting will be held on October 24.

A total of 202 polling stations have been set up for two seats. While 113 polling stations are in Pachhad, 89 are in Dharamshala, she added.

An auxiliary polling station has been set up at the Dari old-age home to facilitate 24 elderly inmates to cast their votes in Dharamshala, Thakur said.

Thirteen polling stations in Pachhad and 10 in Dharamshala have been identified as vulnerable, Thakur said, adding that four polling stations in Dharamshala are critical.

While seven candidates are in fray from Dharamshala, five are trying their luck from Pachhad.

In Dharamshala, direct contest is expected between Vishal Nehriya of the BJP and Vijay Inder Karan of the Congress. Both are contesting election for the first time.

On the other hand, a triangular contest is expected on the Pachhad (SC) constituency among Reena Kashyap of the BJP, Gangu Ram Musafir of the Congress and Dayal Pyari, a BJP rebel contesting as Independent.

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Former Sirmour Zila Parishad chairperson Pyari was an aspirant of the BJP ticket but when the party fielded former Zila Parishad member Reena Kashyap, she decided to contest as an independent candidate.

Musafir (74) has been contesting assembly elections from the Pachhad seat since 1982. He has won seven times and lost twice.

He was elected as an Independent in 1982 and subsequently won on a Congress ticket in 1985, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2003 and 2007. He lost in 2012 and 2017.

By-elections to Pachhad and Dharamshala Assembly seats were necessitated after sitting BJP MLAs Suresh Kashyap and Kishan Kapoor, respectively, were elected to the Lok Sabha this May.

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The bypolls to the two Assembly segments are considered a test for Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur as the ruling BJP looks to not only retain the seats but also increase the margin. The opposition Congress is hopeful to win the two seats.

In the last Assembly elections held in December two years ago, Suresh Kashyap (30,243 votes) defeated his nearest rival former minister Musafir with a margin of 6,427 votes in Pachhad.

In Dharamshala, the victory margin of the BJP’s Kishan Kapoor over Sudhir Sharma of the Congress was of 2,997 votes in 2017.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Lok Sabha Elections 2019: Overall voter turnout of 67% highest ever for LS polls

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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An estimated 67.11 percent of the nearly 91 crore electors turned up to cast their vote in this year’s seven-phase Lok Sabha elections, the highest ever turnout recorded in any parliamentary polls in India. The overall turnout in 2014 was 66.40 percent. But, the Election Commission figures are provisional and are subject to change. The overall turnout was recorded at 67.11 percent, as per data available on Monday morning.

Out of the 543 Lok Sabha seats, elections were held in 542 constituencies as the EC had cancelled polls to the Vellore constituency on the grounds of excessive use of money power.  The poll panel is yet to announce a fresh date for elections in Vellore.

While there were 83.40 crore voters in the 2014 polls, their number stood at 90.99 crore as on April 23, the day third phase of polling took place for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. In the 2009 elections, the turnout was pegged at 56.9 percent.

In 2019, the voter turnout saw a decreasing trend from the first to the seventh phase, which took place on Sunday.

According to data provided by the EC, in phase one, the turnout was 69.61 percent. It went down marginally to 69.44 percent in phase two and further down to 68.40 percent in the third phase.

In the fourth phase, the turnout saw a dip of nearly three per cent and stood at 65.50 percent. In the fifth phase, the turnout was 64.16 percent, but went up marginally to 64.40 per cent in the sixth and penultimate phase. In the seventh and the last phase, it was 65.15 percent, according to the EC’s Voter Turnout app on Monday evening. 

The cumulative turnout figure of the first six phases stood at 67.34 percent, which is 1.21 percent more than the corresponding constituencies in 2014.
Madhya Pradesh’s turnout was 5.92 percent more than that in 2014 and Himachal Pradesh’s 5.1 percent higher than that in the last Lok Sabha polls.

Chandigarh, on the other hand, recorded a massive dip in turnout as compared to the last elections. The turnout went down by 10.27 percent.  Punjab also witnessed a lower turnout as compared to 2014. The gap was a glaring 5.64 percent. In most of the states, the turnout was marginally higher by 2.5 percent than in 2014.

Out of 18 lakh registered voters, 16.49 lakh have sent their postal ballots to their respective returning officers as on May 17.

The postal ballots were electronically transmitted to the service voters. They have to download it, fill it and send it by speed post.

Interestingly, the gap between male and female voters turning out to cast their vote is narrowing since 2009. In 2009, the gap was nine per cent, which went down to 1.4 per cent in 2014. It now tentatively stands at 0.4 per cent now.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Voter Turnout Phase 6: 60% voting in Delhi, West Bengal records 80%

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The sixth phase of Lok Sabha polls witnessed a turnout of 63.3 percent as 59 parliamentary constituencies in seven states voted Sunday, the Election Commission said.

The sixth phase of polling was held for eight seats in Bihar, all 10 seats in Haryana and all seven in Delhi, four in Jharkhand, eight in Madhya Pradesh, 14 in Uttar Pradesh and eight in West Bengal.

Uttar Pradesh: 54 percent

Over 54 percent polling was reported till 6 pm in 14 Lok Sabha constituencies of Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, an official said.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Union minister Maneka Gandhi are among the key contestants in the state in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha polls.

“The average polling percentage in this phase in the state was 54.12 percent this time,” state Chief Electoral Officer L Venkateswarlu told reporters here.

While Ambedkar Nagar recorded the highest turnout of 58.78 percent, enthusiasm among voters was least in Allahabad, where 50.58 percent exercised their franchise.

According to the Election Commission, the polling percentage in rest of the seats are: 54.56 percent in Sultanpur, 53.20 percent in Pratapgarh, 51.38 percent in Phulpur, 51.41 percent in Shrawasti, 51.80 percent in Domariyaganj, 58 percent in Basti, 53.30 percent in Sant Kabir Nagar, 55.70 percent in Lalganj, 56.20 percent in Azamgarh, 54.80 percent in Jaunpur, 53.20 percent in Machlishahar and 54.76 percent in Bhadohi.

Altogether, 177 candidates are contesting in these 14 constituencies, where 2.53 crore people are eligible to vote at 16,998 polling centres.

Delhi: 59.8 percent

A turnout of 59.8 percent was recorded in elections for Delhi’s seven parliamentary constituencies on Sunday, the Election Commission said.

With this fate of 164 candidates of various political parties including former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, state BJP chief Manoj Tiwari, cricketer-turned-politician Gautam Gambhir and boxer Vijender Singh has been sealed in Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).

Polling began on Sunday morning in all seven constituencies in the state in the sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections.

Over 1.43 crore people in Delhi were eligible to vote in this election. Out of total 164 candidates, 18 are women while there are 43 Independent candidates.

Madhya Pradesh: 64 percent

A voter turnout of 64.01 percent was recorded till 6 pm in the eight Lok Sabha seats in Madhya Pradesh that went to polls on Sunday, an official said.

Of the 29 Lok Sabha seats in the state, six went to polls in the fourth phase on April 29 and seven in the fifth phase on May 6. After the polling on Sunday, the rest eight seats in Madhya Pradesh will be held in the final phase on May 19.

Voting on Sunday started at 7 am in Bhopal, Morena, Bhind, Gwalior, Guna, Sagar, Vidisha and Rajgarh constituencies in the sixth phase of the general elections.

The official said voting was peaceful across the state.

Constituency-wise polling percentage at the end of official polling time, which was 6 pm, was Morena 60.67 percent, Bhind 53.09 percent, Gwalior 59.60 percent, Guna 66.82 percent, Sagar 65.27 percent, Vidisha 69.87 percent, Bhopal 65.33 percent and Rajgarh 72.47 percent, he said.

Haryana: 67.40 percent

Around 67.40 percent voters on Sunday sealed the fate of 223 candidates, including two union ministers and a former chief minister, in the general elections held for the 10 Lok Sabha seats in Haryana.

In the 2014 general election, the overall poll percentage stood at 71.86.

State Joint Chief Electoral Officer Inderjeet Singh said till compiling of figures at 9 pm, over 67 percent voters exercised their franchise in the polls.

No untoward incident was reported in the state and the polling remained peaceful.

The highest polling percentage (till 9 pm) was recorded in the Sirsa parliamentary constituency (73.11) followed by Kurukshetra (72.46) percent and the lowest was in Karnal (60.78).

Jharkhand: 64.46 percent

An estimated 64.46 percent of the over 66.85 lakh electorate exercised their franchise till 4 pm in four Lok Sabha constituencies of Jharkhand on Sunday, during the third phase of polls in the state, an election official said.

No untoward incident was reported from any part of the state, he said. An estimated 60 percent turnout has been recorded, and it will increase. The final figure will be available around 6 PM,” the official said here.

Bihar: 60 percent

Ignoring the scorching summer heat, 59.38 percent of the 1.38 crore electorate in eight of Bihar’s 40 Lok Sabha seats, which went to the polls in the sixth phase of polling on Sunday, had cast their vote till 6 p.m., officials here said.

Voting in the state’s Bhojpuri-speaking northern belt was held amidst tight security and passed off without any violence, except for some clashes between supporters of rival parties, as per officials at the police headquarters here.

West Bengal: 80  percent

Nearly 80 percent of the 1,33,69,749 electorate exercised their franchise till 5 pm in eight Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal on Sunday, an election official said.

“Except some incidents of disturbances in Keshpur, polling is mostly peaceful. We have sought reports from the district officials about the incidents.

“In the eight Lok Sabha constituencies in the state, around 79.93 per cent of voters have cast their ballots till 5 pm,” a senior official of the state CEO’s office told PTI.

Tamluk seat recorded the highest voter turnout at 82.99 percent, followed by Bishnupur (SC) at 81.90 percent, Jhargram (ST) at 81.68 percent, Ghatal at 80.350 percent, Kanthi at 80.06 percent, Purulia at 78.64 percent, Medinipore at 78.17 percent and Bankura at 75.68 percent, he said.

The eight constituencies are spread across five districts.

There were reports of an attack on BJP’s Ghatal candidate, former IPS officer Bharati Ghosh, when she tried to enter a polling booth in Keshpur.

(With inputs from agencies)

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow