Lok Sabha elections 2024: Phase 5 sees 60.3% turnout against 62.5% in 2019

Over 53 million people voted across 49 seats in six states and two Union territories.

The fifth phase of the Lok Sabha election on Monday witnessed a turnout of 60.3 percent at 11.45 pm as against 62.5 percent in 2019. West Bengal registered the highest polling at 74.7 percent and Maharashtra witnessed the least at 54.3 percent.

Over 53 million people voted across 49 seats in six states and two Union territories. The overall turnout for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls does not include the delimited seat of Baramulla.

In 14 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, the voting percentage was 57.8 percent as compared to 58.5 percent in 2019. Six seats in the state, including RaeBareli and Amethi, witnessed higher polling than in 2019.

Notable shift

Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir saw a significant increase at 57.4 percent as against 34.6 percent five years ago. This turnout was higher than any of the six constituencies in Mumbai. In Mumbai, the voter participation ranged from 47.7 percent in Mumbai South to 55.2 percent in Mumbai North, according to the Election Commission’s turnout app. In Maharashtra, where 13 seats went to polls, Bhiwandi, Kalyan, and Thane witnessed increased voter engagement.

Urban voters continue to disappoint

Cities such as Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, and Lucknow did not witness a high turnout. “Parliamentary constituencies in various urban cities like Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, and Lucknow continued the trend of urban apathy as noticed in the last general election in 2019,” read a statement by the Election Commission.

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With the fifth phase, polling was concluded in 428 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats. According to the Election Commission’s voter turnout app, key constituencies such Amethi and Rae Bareli, represented by Union Minister Smriti Irani and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi respectively, saw increased voter participation. Other constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, including Barabanki, Fatehpur, Kaiserganj, and Rampur, also experienced higher turnout compared to the 2019 polls.

Lok Janshakti Party leader Chirag Paswan’s constituency Hajipur in Bihar and Jehanabad saw higher voter turnout as compared to 2019. Meanwhile, Hazaribagh in Jharkhand experienced a minor dip at 64.5% compared to 64.9% in the last election. All constituencies in Odisha and West Bengal saw a decline in voter turnout.

Kalyan recorded the lowest turnout among all constituencies at 47.1 percent, followed by Mumbai South at 47.8 percent. Arambagh in West Bengal saw the highest polling at 79.5 percent. However, this was nearly four percentage points lower than five years ago.

According to the Election Commission, polling across all constituencies was conducted smoothly with stringent security measures ensuring a conducive environment for voters. “The weather was largely normal except for hot conditions in isolated pockets,” it said.