55.69% voter turnout in first phase of Bihar assembly elections: EC

The first phase of the Assembly elections in Bihar recorded 55.69 per cent voter turnout, the Election Commission said on Thursday.

A total of 71 assembly constituencies of Bihar went to polls on Wednesday in the first of the three-phase elections amid tight security and with COVID-19 guidelines in place.

As compared to corresponding assembly constituencies which went to poll in the 2015 assembly elections and the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the turnout this time was higher.

In the 2015 assembly elections, the turnout was 54.94 per cent in the corresponding constituencies. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls -- with the same assembly seats mapped to parliamentary seats -- the turnout was 53.54 per cent.

"So turnout in phase one is higher than both the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections," a spokesperson said.