5-state Assembly polls to have 8.2 crore male, 7.8 cr female electorates; 60.2 lakh first-time voters: EC

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday said nearly 16 crore voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the Assembly elections in five states – Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana that will be held between November 7 and 30.

Polls in the five states will have 8.2 crore male and 7.8 crore female voters, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said while addressing a press conference to announce the schedule for the last set of Assembly elections ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

There are 60.2 lakh first-time voters, CEC Kumar said.

“These five states will have 1.77 lakh polling stations. Of these, 1.01 lakh stations will have webcasting facilities,” the CEC added.

More than 8,000 polling stations will be managed by women, he said.

“We have gathered here after a gap of six months. These elections are significant for the country and after this we will meet for the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections,” Kumar said.

“We have met all stakeholders, including political parties and enforcement agencies, while preparing for assembly elections in Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana,” he said.

The CEC added that the Election Commission has placed special emphasis on making electoral rolls inclusive and the focus will also be on “roll-to-poll” to ensure that all voters come to vote.

While the Congress is in power in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh is ruled by the BJP, Telangana by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi and Mizoram by NDA partner Mizo National Front (MNF).

With inputs from PTI