The 2019 Lok Sabha Elections Witnessed The Highest Ever Voter Turnout In India

In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, close to 67.11 per cent of the approximately 91 crore turned up to cast their votes, making it was the highest-ever turnout recorded in any parliamentary polls in India.

In 2014, the voter turnout was recorded at 66.40 per cent.

Out of the 543 Lok Sabha seats, voting was held in 542 constituencies. The Election Commission had cancelled polling in Vellore due to excessive use of money power to buy votes. A fresh date of polling is not yet announced by EC for Vellore.

Women voter turnout greater than men

As the polls concluded with the final phase of the seven-phase elections, data for the first four phases show that women turned out in far greater numbers to vote this time than they did before.

The average turnout for men was 68.30 per cent in the first phase of polling, the figure for women stood at 68 per cent. The number of women voters in these phases was 203.1 million compared with 215 million for men.

PTI

At least in nine states and Union Territories, women turnout was greater than that of men. Women turnout was highest in Manipur at 84.16 per cent and Meghalaya at 73.64 per cent, followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Kerala, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Uttarakhand, Goa, Mizoram and Lakshadweep.

In Kerala, where violence followed the Supreme Court¡¯s verdict allowing women and girls to enter the Sabarimala temple, the female voter turnout this time was 78.8 per cent, higher than the 76.47 per cent for men.

Interestingly, the gap between male and female voters turning out to cast their vote is narrowing since 2009. In 2009, the gap stood at 9 per cent while in 2014, it came down to 1.4 per cent. As of now, the gap stands at a meagre 0.4 per cent.

Lakshadweep records highest turnout, J&K lowest

Lakshadweep has posted about 85 per cent turnout which is highest among all states and Union Territories. The North-East states like Tripura, Nagaland, Assam along with Southern states Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh had high polling numbers.

AFP/File Photo

On the other hand, Jammu and Kashmir recorded the worst voter turnout, continuing with the dismal trend. While 80.9 per cent voters boycotted the elections across Kashmir, the turnout was just 8.76 per cent in the militant hothouse of Anantnag.

The sharp decline in voter participation in elections is a major setback for efforts towards indulging the people of the valley in mainstream politics.