Lok Sabha election 2024: Women voters up in most constituencies, so far: SBI Research

Lok Sabha Polls 2024 Live: Voting began at 7 am in 24,553 polling centres in Maharashtra and will end at 6 pm, the official said.

Most constituencies that went to the polls in the first four phases of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections saw at least 1.2 crore more women voting than in the 2019 general election, an SBI research report has said.

"As of now, gender wise voter turnout for 373 constituencies has been released. Out of 373 constituencies, 270 constituencies saw increased participation of around 1.2 crore women compared to 2019," the report, released on May 20, said.

The net incremental share of women voters in the period comes to 93.6 lakh, the report said, much higher than an 84.7 lakh increase in the participation of male counterpart.

"An interesting observation from our study is the structural shift evident in voters turnout pattern and electoral outcome at select intervals that have defined the Indian politics in last three decades decisively… the 1996 elections and the 2014 election reveal the structural change…while in 1996, the structural change was in terms of number of electorates, in 2024, the structural break came in the form of increased women voter turnout," the report said.

Three women centric schemes namely Ujjwala Yojana, Matru Vandana Yojana and PM Awas Yojana were having a significant ground level impact in rural areas, which may be the reason for increased women participation, the report said.

The Ujjwala Yojana offers cooking gas at subsidised rates, the Matru Vandana Yojana provides financial support to pregnant and lactating mothers, while the PM Awas Yojana facilitates access to affordable housing for low-income residents, with ownership in the name of a female member or in joint name.

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The gap between male and female voters was narrowing. The report said of around 96 crore registered voters, 65.3 crore were expected to vote in all phases. Of the 65.3 crore, men voters are projected at 34.3 crore and women at 31 crore.

On May 20, voting opened for the fifth phase in eight states and union territories for 49 Lok Sabha seats.

According to the Election Commission of India (ECI) data, the number of registered women voters increased by around 4 crore from 2019, with the number of first-time female electors at about 1.41 crore surpassing male counterparts at 1.22 crore.

All Indian citizens who turned 18 by January 1, 2024 can vote in this election.