NEW DELHI: Voting for the fifth phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections began on Monday at 7 am. In this phase, 49 constituencies across eight states and Union Territories are participating, with a total of 695 candidates vying for seats. Notably, this is the smallest phase in terms of the number of constituencies. Simultaneously, polling is also taking place for 35 assembly constituencies in the Odisha Legislative Assembly.
The states and union territories where voting is currently underway in the fifth phase include Jharkhand (3 constituencies), Odisha (5 constituencies), Uttar Pradesh (14 constituencies), Bihar (5 constituencies), Maharashtra (13 constituencies), West Bengal (7 constituencies), Ladakh (1 constituency), and Jammu and Kashmir (1 constituency). By the end of this phase, 428 out of the Lok Sabha’s 543 seats will have been contested since the elections began on April 19.
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Key candidates in this phase include union minister Smriti Irani, seeking a second term from Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi constituency, union ministers Rajnath Singh (Lucknow) and Piyush Goyal (Mumbai North), Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (Rae Bareli), LJP leader Chirag Paswan (Hajipur), Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde’s son Shrikant Shinde (Kalyan), National Conference leader Omar Abdullah (Baramulla), and RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav’s daughter Rohini Acharya (Saran).
Here are some essential facts about the fifth phase of the Lok Sabha elections:
- Voter Demographics:
- Over 8.95 crore voters are eligible to cast their ballots.
- This includes 4.69 crore males, 4.26 crore females, and 5,409 third-gender electors.
- Polling Stations:
- Approximately 9.47 lakh polling officials are managing 94,732 polling stations.
- Focus on Key Constituencies:
- All eyes are on Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi and Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seats, both historically associated with the Congress party’s Gandhi family.
- Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Rae Bareli, replacing his mother and former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, who represented the seat four times.
- In the neighbouring Amethi constituency, the Congress aims to regain the seat from federal Minister for Women and Child Development, Smriti Irani.
- Voter Turnout:
- As of now, the voter turnout for the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 stands at approximately 66.95%.
- During the first four phases, around 451 million people have already cast their votes.
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Campaigning for this phase concluded on May 18, and the last date for filing nominations was May 3. The final results will be announced on June 4, marking the end of this extensive democratic exercise.