Voting

Record 93.19% turnout in first phase of West Bengal Assembly polls: EC

The first phase of the West Bengal assembly elections recorded a voter turnout of 93.19 per cent, the highest ever in the state, the Election Commission said on Saturday. Polling for the first phase was held on April 23 across 152 assembly segments in 16 districts, and 3.36 crore of the total 3.61 crore voters exercised their franchise, it said. Of those who voted, 1.65 crore were women and 1.71 crore were men, it added. The highest turnout was recorded in Cooch Behar district at 96.2 per cent, followed by Dakshin Dinajpur at 95.44 per cent and Malda at 94.79 per cent. Jalpaiguri recorded a turnout of 94.76 per cent, Birbhum of 94.51 per cent and Uttar Dinajpur of 94.16 per cent. Murshidabad registered 93.67 per cent turnout, Alipurduar 93.2 per cent, Purba Medinipur 92.75 per cent, Bankura 92.55 per cent, Jhargram 92.26 per cent, Paschim Medinipur 92.19 per cent, and Purulia 91.59 per cent. Paschim Bardhaman registered a 90.32 per cent turnout. Darjeeling recorded 88.98 per cent

Voters rationalisation: Lok Sabha seats with highest and lowest numbers

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has pushed for rationalisation of the number of voters in every constituency, saying MPs from seats with a large electorate cannot fulfil their aspirations. Urging the opposition to support the passage of a bill to implement a 33 per cent quota for women in legislatures in 2029, Shah had said in the Lok Sabha on Friday that the delimitation exercise was essential to rationalise the number of voters in every constituency as it was essential to implement in its true spirit the idea of "one person, one vote". Citing the example of Malkajgiri in Telangana, he had said that this Lok Sabha seat had more than 20 lakh voters and the MPs from such constituencies could not cater to the aspirations of such a large voter base. Here is a look at the Lok Sabha seats with the highest and the lowest number of voters during the 2024 parliamentary polls. According to the Election Commission's data of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, there are five constituencies, including Wes

Bulgarians head to polls to elect Parliament for eighth time in 5 years

Bulgarians are heading to the polls on Sunday for the eighth time in five years, hoping to finally elect a parliament able to resolve the longtime political impasse that has gripped this Balkan country. The snap vote follows the resignation of a conservative-led government amid nationwide protests last December that drew hundreds of thousands, mainly young people, to the streets. The protesters called for an independent judiciary to tackle widespread corruption. Since 2021, the nation of 6.5 million has struggled with fragmented parliaments that produced weak governments, none of which managed to survive more than a year before being brought down by street protests or backroom deals in parliament. The revolving door of governments has fostered widespread public mistrust, voter apathy and a shrinking turnout in elections. Still, Sunday's vote is significant as it could bring to power a left-leaning, pro-Russian former president - just days after Hungarian voters rejected the ...

Crosscurrents in 'Keralam': Are vote shares signalling flux in politics?

Civic poll results have complicated the state's binary politics and narrowed the Left's margin for error. Are vote shares signalling flux?

Campaigning ends for Jharkhand civic polls; voting on 23 February

The campaigning for the polling to Jharkhand's 48 urban local bodies (ULB), including Ranchi, concluded on Saturday evening, a State Election Commission official said. The election will be held on February 23 and votes will be counted on February 27, he said. "The campaigning for the urban local body polls ended at 5 pm on Saturday. The polling will take place on February 23 from 7am to 5pm," SEC Secretary Radhe Shyam Prasad told PTI. He said that the 48-hour 'silence period' started from 5pm on Saturday, during which all forms of campaigning are banned. "Under the rules, no person shall call, organise, or attend any public meeting for a period of 48 hours before the time fixed for the close of poll. This provision came into effect at 5 pm today," Prasad said. The candidates made their last-ditch efforts to garner people's supports in their favour on Saturday. The elections are scheduled to be held for the post of 48 mayors or chairpersons and councillors at 1,087 wards in nine .

The Echo Machine: Why democracy depends on citizens, not perfect leaders

Democracy's survival does not hinge on perfect leaders or policies, but on cultivating citizens who can tell the difference between what their feeds confirm and what evidence actually supports

Indian women voters find their voice, step out of the electoral closet

As political parties continue to scramble to design women-friendly welfare schemes and campaign speeches, women have begun to wield their vote as an instrument of assertion

Bihar Assembly elections results 2025: Top losing candidates and parties

Bihar elections results: The turnout in the first phase was recorded at 65.08 per cent, while in the second phase, 68.76 per cent of voters went to the polls

Bihar election results: NDA takes lead in 160 seats, show trends at 11 am

Bihar Assembly elections 2025: By 11 am, the NDA had crossed the halfway mark of 122 seats and currently stands at 163 seats, while the Mahagathbandhan was leading in more than 45 constituencies

Phulwari Assembly election results 2025: JDU's Shyam Rajak in lead

Phulwari constituency results: Phulwari, a reserved seat for Scheduled Castes in Patna district, has a mix of Dalit, Muslim, and other communities

Tarapur Assembly election results 2025: BJP's Samrat Choudhary wins seat

Tarapur constituency results: Tarapur is one of Bihar's important constituencies because of its strong political history

Patna Sahib Assembly election results 2025: BJP's Ratnesh Kumar wins seat

Patna Sahib constituency results: In the 2025 assembly elections, the state saw a record voter turnout in both phases, with the overall turnout at 67.13 per cent, making it the highest since 1951

Bihar Assembly elections: When and where to watch exit poll results live?

Bihar elections 2025 exit polls: Bihar votes in the final phase on November 11, with exit poll predictions expected after 6:30 pm

Record turnout in Bihar phase-1 elections 'huge shock' to Oppn: PM Modi

Ahead of the second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections, scheduled for November 11, PM Modi said that people do not want a government that uses fear and violence

Bihar elections 2025: How to vote, what documents to carry to polling booth

Bihar Assembly elections 2025: In the first phase, polling will be held on November 6 from 7 am to 5 pm across 121 constituencies in 18 districts

Over 7 mn forms distributed on 1st day of West Bengal voter enumeration

As part of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, more than 70 lakh enumeration forms were distributed by over 80,000 booth-level officers (BLOs) on the first day of their house-to-house visits across the state, an official said on Wednesday. The month-long exercise began in the state on Tuesday and will continue till December 4. "On Tuesday, over 70 lakh enumeration forms were distributed by the BLOs," an official of the Election Commission told PTI. BLOs continued visiting the residences of voters across West Bengal on Wednesday to distribute the enumeration forms, he said. "Adequate security personnel are accompanying the BLOs for their safety. Yesterday, there were no untoward incidents reported from anywhere in the state. If any resistance is reported against a BLO, we immediately instruct the district electoral officers (DEOs) to investigate," the official said. As part of the process, 80,681 BLOs have been deployed across the 294 assembly ..

Bihar Assembly Elections 2025: Check full schedule, counting date, and key details | Phase 1 voting

The Election Commission of India has announced the complete schedule for the Bihar Assembly Elections 2025. This year, the state will vote in two phases, on November 6 and 11

Rahul to hold press conference in Delhi today, may drop 'hydrogen bomb'

On September 1, Rahul Gandhi warned the BJP of an impending expose, stating that he will soon unleash a "hydrogen bomb" about his allegations of vote theft

Bihar Assembly elections Phase 1: Key dates, candidates, political parties

Bihar Assembly elections 2025: The current assembly's term ends on November 22, 2025; as many as 2,616 candidates are in the race across both phases

SIR exercise to begin in 12 states, Union territories from Tuesday

Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the Election Commission's voters' list cleanup exercise, will commence in nine states and three Union territories from Tuesday. SIR in these states and Union territories with 51 crore voters will conclude on February 7, 2026, with the publication of the final electoral roll. After Bihar, this is the second round of SIR. The state's final voter list with nearly 7.42 crore names was published on September 30. The 12 states and Union territories where the second round of SIR will be conducted are the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Among these, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and West Bengal will go to polls in 2026. In Assam, another state where polls are due in 2026, the revision of electoral rolls will be announced separately as a Supreme Court-supervised exercise to verify citizenship is underway in the state. Also, a ...