India on Friday kicked off the world’s largest election, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an unprecedented third term in office. As the clock struck 7:00 am, voters began queuing outside polling stations, all under tight security measures to ensure a smooth electoral process.
According to the Election Commission, 60.03% voter turnout was recorded till 7 pm in phase one of Lok Sabha polls. By 5 pm, Nagaland reported a 55.85% voter turnout.
A deployment of over 18 lakh polling officials was made, overseeing more than 16.63 crore voters across 1.87 lakh polling stations in 21 states and union territories. Among them, 35.67 lakh are first-time voters, and an additional 3.51 crore are young voters aged between 20-29 years. Additionally, over 14.14 lakh registered voters aged 85 and above, along with 13.89 lakh Persons with Disabilities (PwD) voters were provided the option to vote from their homes. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has reported positive feedback regarding this Home Voting feature.
The elections are being conducted in several phases across various states and union territories. Today marks the commencement and conclusion of elections in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry. States like Karnataka, Rajasthan, Tripura, and Manipur will vote in two phases. Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh and Assam will witness elections in three phases, and Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand are set for four-phase polling.
In the second phase, 89 Lok Sabha seats across 13 states and union territories will go to polls. Notably, all 20 seats in Kerala will be contested during this phase on 26 April. The 2024 Lok Sabha elections are scheduled to be conducted in seven phases, with subsequent phases on 26 April, 7 May, 13 May, 20 May, 25 May, and 1 June. Vote counting is set to take place on 4 June.
Nagaland records over 56% voter turnout for lone Lok Sabha seat
The General Election for the Lok Sabha 2024 was conducted today across 102 parliamentary constituencies spanning 17 states and four Union Territories. In Nagaland, voting commenced at 7:00 am and concluded at 4:00 pm, registering a provisional polling percentage exceeding 55%.
Chief Electoral Officer Vyasan R, addressing a press conference in Kohima, affirmed that the state experienced predominantly peaceful polling without any significant untoward incidents.
However, no voter turnout was reported in areas under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization (ENPO).
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Three candidates are competing for Nagaland’s solitary Lok Sabha seat: Dr Chumben Murry of the NDPP, S Supongmeren Jamir representing Congress, and Independent Candidate Hayithung Tungoe Lotha.
Dr Chumben Murry, the consensus candidate of the People’s Democratic Alliance and representing the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party, cast his vote at SMB High School in the Wokha Assembly Constituency. S Supongmeren Jamir, the Indian National Congress candidate, exercised his franchise at the Longsa polling station in the Mongoya Assembly Constituency of Mokokchung district. Nagaland Governor La Ganesan voted at the Model Polling Station, TT Indoor Stadium, Officers Hill, Kohima, while Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio cast his vote in Touphema village under the Northern Angami-2 Assembly Constituency.
Nine assembly constituencies in Nagaland report over 90 percent voter turnout
According to the latest updates, nearly 56 percent of the state’s electorate, totaling more than 13 lakhs, cast their votes today. The highest voter turnout of 96.44 percent was recorded in the Tyui assembly constituency, followed closely by Wokha at 96.38 percent and Sanis at 95.63 percent.
Assembly constituencies including Atoizu, Bhandari, Mongoya, Satakha, Tseminyu, and Tuli also surpassed the 90 percent mark in voter turnout. Meanwhile, the Kohima Town assembly constituency reported the lowest polling percentage at 53.73 percent, followed closely by Northern Angami-I at 54.34 percent and Western Angami at 59.26 percent.
Zero votes were cast in the 20 assembly constituencies across the six eastern Nagaland districts of Mon, Longleng, Kiphire, Noklak, Shamator, and Tuensang, in compliance with the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organization’s call to abstain from participating in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.
These six districts constitute 30 percent of the state’s total electorate. Out of the 13.25 lakh voters in Nagaland, the six districts in Eastern Nagaland account for 4,00,632 voters. Additional Chief Electoral Officer of Nagaland, Awa Loring, stated that polling personnel were present between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. at the 738 polling stations in the region, which comprises 20 assembly constituencies.