About 4.75% of the voters voted till 9am on Monday across 93 constituencies and 14 districts in the second phase of the Gujarat assembly polls. As many as 25 million voters were eligible to vote in north and central Gujarat for 833 candidates. Gandhinagar reported the highest turnout (7.05%) in the first hour of polling. The first phase of voting for 89 seats was held on Thursday last with a turnout of 63.31%.
The results will be announced on December 8 along with those in Himachal Pradesh as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is hoping for a seventh straight assembly election victory in the western state. The Congress is looking for a repeat of its strong showing in 2017 and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is aiming for a strong showing in its first assembly poll outing in the state.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was the state’s chief minister between 2001 and 2014 and around whose popularity the BJP campaign has revolved, voted at a school in Ahmedabad. He greeted voters as he stood in a queue to vote.
Modi congratulated the voters and the Election Commission of India. “Voters in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi have celebrated this festival of democracy with great excitement and hope. I congratulate the people of the country for this celebration of democracy. I also congratulate the Election Commission for conducting elections so magnificently, developing this great tradition of conducting elections that bolsters our prestige in the world,” he told reporters.
Modi earlier urged the people to vote in large numbers. “Urging all those who are voting in Phase 2 of the Gujarat elections, particularly the young voters and women voters to vote in large numbers. I will be casting my vote in Ahmedabad at around 9 AM,” Modi tweeted.
The state is witnessing the first triangular electoral contest since 1990, even as the BJP is hoping to consolidate its position in its stronghold. Its principal challengers are the Congress and the AAP, which is hoping to capitalise on anti-incumbency, and promises such as 300 units of free electricity.
A lesser turnout was recorded in the first phase of the election in the areas where the BJP faced some setbacks in 2017 amid anger among farmers and trader communities and the Patidar quota agitation. Of the 89 seats that went to the polls last week, the BJP won 47, the Congress 39, and others three in 2017. A large number of seats in the first phase are also in the countryside, where the BJP performed relatively poorly five years ago.
The second phase of polling is being held in central Gujarat, which is considered a BJP bastion due to its urban areas, parts of the state’s north, and sections of the tribal belt.
As many as 788 candidates were in the fray for the first phase across 19 districts and 23.9 million voters were eligible to vote. These included 574,000 voters in the age group of 18-19 and 4,945 above 99.
Morbi, where 135 people died in a bridge collapse in October, was among the constituencies that went to the polls on Thursday last.
Modi led the BJP campaign citing the benefits of a double-engine government — a reference to the party being in power both at the Centre and in the state — as well as its development record, including bringing water to parched areas of the state through the Sardar Sarovar project.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal held 14 rallies for AAP in the run-up to the first phase focused on governance delivery. He asked people to vote for change.
The Congress ran a quieter campaign but made 11 promises, including one million jobs, implementation of the old pension scheme as well as 300 units of free electricity.
