What was the voter turnout in the Telangana municipal polls?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
Hyderabad, Feb 11 (NationPress) More than 73 percent of eligible voters participated in the municipal elections conducted across 116 municipalities and seven municipal corporations in Telangana on Wednesday.
The State Election Commission (SEC) reported a turnout of 73.01 percent among the 123 urban local bodies.
Voting commenced at 7 a.m. at 8,191 polling stations and concluded at 5 p.m., allowing those still in line to vote after the closing time.
A total of 52,17,413 voters were registered to participate in 2,981 wards across these localities, with 38,09,406 voters casting their votes.
The turnout in municipalities was recorded at 75.88 percent, while municipal corporations saw 66.05 percent participation.
Polling day saw significant enthusiasm, with senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and patients making their way to polling stations.
The SEC deployed over 43,000 polling staff to facilitate the voting process, and webcasting was arranged at all polling locations.
State Election Commissioner Rani Kumudini indicated that the final turnout percentage would be confirmed upon receipt of reports from all municipalities and corporations.
Some isolated incidents occurred in Medak, Narsapur, and Karimnagar districts, where clashes erupted between BRS and BJP workers over alleged electoral fraud.
In Sangareddy, former Congress MLA Jagga Reddy confronted police after an incident involving a Congress candidate, leading to a tense confrontation.
In Karimnagar, law enforcement used a lathi charge to disperse protesting BJP workers who claimed injuries among their members.
The electoral futures of 12,944 candidates were determined as votes were cast.
Voting was conducted for 2,569 wards in the 116 municipalities, with twelve candidates in nine municipalities elected unopposed.
The SEC postponed polling in a ward of Makthal municipality due to the suicide of a BJP candidate.
A total of 10,719 candidates contested in the 116 municipalities, including 2,358 from the ruling Congress, 2,478 from BRS, and 2,252 from BJP.
Officials established 6,017 polling centres for the municipalities.
Voting also took place in 412 wards across seven municipal corporations, with candidates in two wards of Mahabubnagar and Ramagundam elected unopposed.
Authorities set 2,174 polling centres in these corporations, where 2,225 candidates competed, including 410 from Congress, 401 from BRS, and 382 from BJP.
Any necessary repolling will occur on Thursday, with vote counting scheduled for the next day at 136 centres.
Municipal chairpersons and vice-chairpersons are set to be elected on February 16.