India elections: Nearly 61% voter turnout in phase 2

A voter turnout of around 60% was recorded in 88 constituencies across India's 13 states and Union territories till 5pm in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 on Friday.

"Polling in the second phase of General Elections 2024 which commenced at 7 AM today simultaneously across 88 PCs recorded an approximate voter turnout of 60.96% as of 7 PM," the Election Commission said in a statement.

Tripura's lone seat up for grabs in this phase recorded the highest turnout of 77.93% followed by the three constituencies of Chhattisgarh with 72.13% and three seats of West Bengal with 71.84%.

Thirteen polling stations in Manipur saw 76.06% voter turnout, while the seats in Assam also saw healthy participation of 70.66% in till 5 pm.

The second phase of the Lok Sabha elections saw a turnout of 53.51% in Maharashtra.

While polling percentage in Bihar saw an increase from the first phase, it was just above Uttar Pradesh at 53.03%. Kishanganj recorded a voter turnout of 56.12%, Katihar registered 55.54%, Purnea recorded 55.14 %, Bhagalpur registered 47.26% and Banka recorded 49.50% till 5 pm, officials said.

A voter turnout of 52.74% was recorded till 5 pm in the eight Lok Sabha constituencies of Uttar Pradesh. According to the Election Commission (EC), 61.89% polling was recorded in Amroha till 5 pm, followed by 55.49% in Meerut, 52.74% in Baghpat, 48.21% in Ghaziabad, 51.66% in Gautam Buddh Nagar, 54.34% in Bulandshahr, 54.36% in Aligarh and 46.96% in Mathura.

The average turnout in the 13 constituencies in Rajasthan that went to polls in the second phase was 59.19 per cent till 5 pm. Despite a few incidents, polling proceeded peacefully, with the highest turnout in Barmer-Jaisalmer and Banswara-Dungarpur. The overall turnout surpassed that of the first phase, with approximately 2.8 crore eligible voters.

The six constituencies voting in the second phase in Madhya Pradesh saw a voter turnout of at least 54.83%. Till 5 pm, Hoshangabad recorded a voter turnout of 63.44%, followed by Tikamgarh at 57.19%, Satna at 57.18 %, Damoh at 53.66%, Khajuraho at 52.91% and Rewa at 45.02%, an Election Commission official told the Press Trust of India.

Karnataka's fourteen Lok Sabha constituencies that went to the polls in the second phase on Friday saw a voter turnout of 63.9% by 5 pm. Mandya recorded the highest turnout with 74.87 % and the lowest was in Bangalore Central with 48.16%.

Polling for all 20 Lok Sabha constituencies in Kerala concluded at 6pm, with the state registering a provisional voter turnout exceeding 67.27 per cent. Though the official time for polling ended at 6 pm, huge queues were seen outside polling booths across the state and therefore, the final turnout percentage is likely to go up, reported PTI.

Kerala had seen a voter turnout of 77.84% in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.