Moderate voting recorded in seven states till 1 p.m.

Moderate voting was recorded in the seven states which went to polls in the penultimate phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

In Andhra Pradesh, where voting is underway for 25 Lok Sabha seats apart from 175 assembly seats, the voter turnout was recorded to be at 41.56 percent till 1 p.m.

In Uttar Pradesh, where voting is being done on 15 Lok Sabha seats, the voter turnout was recorded at 36.15 percent.

In Bihar, where voting is being done on seven Lok Sabha seats, the voter turnout was recorded 36.18 percent.

In West Bengal, where voting is being done on six Lok Sabha seats, the voter turnout was recorded at 48.03 percent.

In Uttarakhand, where voting is being done on five Lok Sabha seats, the voter turnout was recorded at 31.97 percent.

In Himachal Pradesh, where voting is being held at four Lok Sabha seats, the voter turnout was recorded at 37.03 percent.

In Jammu and Kashmir, where voting is being held on two Lok Sabha seats, the voter turnout was recorded at 23.61 percent.

Sixty-four Lok Sabha constituencies spread over seven states and 175 assembly constituencies in the Seemandhra region went to polls early in the morning amid tight security.

Today is the eighth and penultimate phase of the Lok Sabha elections. The Lok Sabha constituencies going to polls are 25 in Andhra Pradesh, 15 in Uttar Pradesh, seven in Bihar, six in West Bengal, five in Uttarakhand, four in Himachal Pradesh and two in Jammu and Kashmir.

Prominent candidates in the fray are Congress Party vice president Rahul Gandhi, Union Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma, Union HRD Minister M.M. Pallam Raju, ex-Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif and television actress Smriti Irani.

Varun Gandhi, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Anurag Thakur, Ram Vilas Paswan, Rabri Devi and Kumar Vishwas are the other prominent leaders whose political future will be decided today.

The Election Commission has reportedly taken several steps to ensure free and fair polling during the last two phases of the general elections.