Gujarat Election: Second Phase Sees 58.8% Turnout, All Eyes On Counting Day On December 8

The ABP-CVoter exit poll predicted a sweep for the BJP in Gujarat. The Congress is likely to come in second with the AAP opening account in the third place in its debut election in Gujarat.

The second phase of polling in 93 seats out of the total 182 seats in Gujarat ended at 5 pm on Monday.

Source : PTI

The second phase of polling in 93 seats out of the total 182 in Gujarat ended on Monday, with the state recording a voter turnout of 58.8 per cent till 5 pm. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, and Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel were among the high-profile voters who exercised their franchise at different booths in Ahmedabad in the second phase.

The final voter turnout in the second phase of the 2017 Assembly election on these 93 seats stood at 69.99 per cent.

The first phase of polling was held on December 1 for 89 assembly seats with a 63.14 per cent voter turnout. Gujarat had registered 68.41 per cent voting in the 2017 Assembly polls.

Here are the key developments around the second phase of the Gujarat elections 2022:

• Voting was held for 93 seats across 14 districts of Gujarat. As many as 58.8% of the 2.51 crore eligible voters turned up at various polling booths to vote for the 833 candidates in the fray from 61 political parties. 
• The Sabarkantha district recorded the highest voting percentage with 65.84 per cent of the eligible voters turning up at polling booths. Ahmedabad district recorded the lowest turnout at 53.57 per cent till 5 pm. In Vadodara, it was 58 per cent, the Election Commission said.
• Bedridden people, patients on oxygen support, senior citizens including centenarians, and transgender persons were among those who came out to vote in the assembly elections.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi cast his vote at a polling booth in Ranip, Ahmedabad. Before going to the booth, the Prime Minister urged the voters to turn out in large numbers.

• PM Modi visited his brother Somabhai Modi on Monday. Somabhai Modi said people could not ignore the work the Centre has done after 2014. He also asked PM Modi to take some rest as well. “People cannot ignore the kind of work Centre has done after 2014. I asked him [PM Modi] that he works a lot for the country, he should take some rest as well,” Somabhai said.
• After the PM cast his vote, the Congress accused him of holding a roadshow, leading to the polling booth. However, the Election Commission said that the accusation was unfounded as there was no proof of PM Modi holding a roadshow on Monday.
• PM Modi's centenarian mother Hiraben cast her vote in Gandhinagar district. 
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah, accompanied by his wife Sonalben Shah and son Jay Shah, cast his vote in the Naranpura area of Ahmedabad city. Shah urged first-time voters to participate in the elections in large numbers.

• Many citizens above the age of 100, including 110-year-old Shantaben Thakor, a 102-year-old woman and a 108-year-old woman, went to their respective polling booths to cast votes in different parts of the state.
• As per the ABP News-CVoter Exit Poll Results 2022, the BJP is likely to win a record number of seats in the Gujarat Assembly election and looks set to form the government for the seventh time. The BJP is expected to bag anywhere between 128-140 seats and secure a vote share of 49.4 per cent, as per the exit poll results.
• The votes will be counted on December 8 and results will be declared the same day.

(With inputs from agencies)