Less people voted in 1st election phase in Modi’s Gujarat than 2017, says India’s poll commission

• PTI
• 02 December, 2022

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By: PTI

An average voter turnout of 63.31 per cent was recorded in the first phase of the Gujarat assembly elections in 89 seats held on Thursday (1), the Election Commission of India said on Friday (2) while announcing final figures.

The turnout was lower than the 66.75 per cent recorded in the first phase in the same 89 constituencies in the 2017 state elections.

Polling for the first phase in 19 districts of Saurashtra, Kutch and south Gujarat was held on Thursday.

The fate of 788 candidates was sealed in Electronic Voting Machines.

Dediapada in Narmada district recorded the highest 82.71 per cent voting, followed by Kaprada in Valsad district which had a turnout of 79.57 per cent.

Gandhidham seat in Kutch district recorded the lowest turnout of 47.86 per cent.

Fourteen constituencies recorded more than 70 per cent voting. District-wise, tribal-dominated Narmada district recorded the highest average turnout of 78.24 per cent, followed by Tapi with 76.91 per cent.

Navsari district recorded average 71.06 per cent voting, the EC said. Botad district recorded the lowest average voter turnout of 57.58 per cent. Amreli followed closely with 57.59 per cent turnout. Surat district recorded 62.27 per cent voting and Rajkot 60.45 per cent.

A special drive had been carried out by the office of the state chief electoral officer P Bharathi to encourage voters to exercise their franchise.

In 2017, the final voter turnout (for both the phases of elections) was 68.41 per cent. The second phase of 2022 elections for remaining 93 seats with 833 candidates in the fray will be held on December 5, and votes will be counted on December 8.

In the 2017 election, of the same 89 seats which went to polls in the first phase, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had won 48, Congress 40, while one seat was bagged by an independent.

The BJP, which has ruled the state for 24 consecutive years now, is seeking to win a straight seventh term.

If it succeeds, it will equal the record of the Left Front government which had ruled in West Bengal for seven consecutive terms till 2011. Besides its traditional foe the Congress, the BJP this time is facing a new adversary in the form of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which campaigned aggressively.