Lok Sabha elections: 60% polling recorded till 5pm in third phase; Assam sees highest voter turnout

Lok Sabha elections: 60% polling recorded till 5pm in third phase; Assam sees highest voter turnout

Lok Sabha elections: Assam led the phase 3 polling with a voter turnout of 74.86%, followed by West Bengal with 73.9%, and Chhattisgarh with 66.87%.

Eleven states and territories including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat voted on Tuesday in the third phase of the Lok Sabha elections amid searing temperatures. Tuesday's polling covered 93 Lok Sabha seats as BJP bagged Surat unopposed after the nomination papers of the Congress candidate were rejected and the others withdrew from the race.

Voter turnout of around 60% was recorded till 5pm, as per EC data, with the highest polling witnessed in BJP-ruled Assam (74.86%) despite overcast skies and light rainfall in most areas. While the official time for voting to end is 6 pm, it can go beyond fixed polling hours to enable voters in the queue who have come well in time to exercise their franchise.

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Among the four Lok Sabha constituencies in Assam that went to the polls today, Dhubri recorded the highest voter turnout at 79.7%, followed by Barpeta at 76.2%, Kokrajhar at 74.2% and Guwahati at 67.6%.

West Bengal registered around 73.9% voter turnout till 5 pm, with largely peaceful polling in four constituencies of two Muslim-majority districts.

In Chhattisgarh, seven of the 11 Lok Sabha seats that voted on Tuesday, a voter turnout of 66.87% was recorded till 5pm. Polling was held in Raipur, Durg, Bilaspur, Korba, Janjgir-Champa, Surguja and Raigarh parliamentary constituencies.

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A voter turnout of 62.28% was recorded till 5pm across nine constituencies in Madhya Pradesh that went to the polls in the third phase. The highest turnout was in Rajgarh with 72.08%, followed by Vidisha (69.20%) and Guna (68.93%). Madhya Pradesh had recorded 58.59% and 67.75% polling in the first and second phases, respectively. Lok Sabha polls in Madhya Pradesh are being conducted in four phases. The fourth, which is the last phase of Lok Sabha polls in the state, will be held on May 13.

11 out of the 48 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra witnessed a voter turnout of 53.40% by 5pm in the third phase, according to election authorities. Among these, Kolhapur recorded the highest turnout at 63.71%, followed by Hatkanangale (62.18%), Latur (55.38%), Satara (54.11%), Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg (53.75%), Osmanabad (52.78%), Sangli (52.56%), Raigad (50.31%), Madha (50%), Solapur (49.17%), and Baramati (45.68%).

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In Gujarat, a voter turnout of 55.22% was recorded by 5pm across 25 constituencies, as per EC data. The tribal-reserved Valsad constituency reported the highest turnout at 68.12%, while Amreli saw the lowest at 45.59%.

A voter turnout of 56% was recorded by 5pm across five Lok Sabha seats in Bihar -- Araria, Jhanjharpur, Supaul, Madhepura, and Khagaria -- all currently held by the ruling NDA. Supaul witnessed the highest turnout at 58.91%, followed by Araria (58.57%), Madhepura (54.92%), Khagaria (54.35%), and Jhanjharpur (53.29%) by 5 pm.

In Uttar Pradesh, Agra witnessed 51.53 per cent polling, Aonla 54.73 per cent, Budaun 52.77 per cent, Bareilly 54.21 per cent, Etah 57.07 per cent, Fatehpur Sikri 54.93 per cent, Firozabad 56.27 per cent, Hathras 53.54 per cent, Mainpuri 55.88 per cent and Sambhal 61.10 per cent, the Election Commission (EC) said.

Voter turnout of 66.14% and 66.71% respectively in the first two phases has been marginally lower than corresponding phases five years back, with analysts blaming the summer heat and the lack of a single strong issue to motivate voters.