Kerala registered a voter turn out of over 74 per cent in the 140 Assembly constituencies that went to the polls on Monday. Official sources expect the final voting percentage to go up marginally by a point or two when the final figures come out, but Kerala is sure to keep its voter turn out record in tact in a triangular electoral contest.
Thiruvananthapuram registered a poll percentage of 72.2 according to the latest reports available. There was no update by the Election Department till late in the night and the official figures of 71.7 per cent remained unchanged on its official website, despite new software to provide voter turnout on real time basis being implemented.
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Long queues were reported in polling booths in several parts of the State at 6 p.m., the closing time for polling. Voters braved intermittent rain in some parts to cast their vote. Kannur, as usual, hit the charts by registering 78.49 per cent, while Pathanamthitta was at the bottom of the table with 61.95 per cent.
As usual, northern districts registered higher voter turnout with all districts, with the exception of Malappuram, registering a turnout that crossed 70 per cent. In the 2011 elections, Kerala polled 75.12 per cent.
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The following are the official figures from other districts recorded at 6 pm: Kasaragod 71.80 per cent, Wayanad 70.42, Kozhikode 73.76, Malappuram 68.51, Palakkad 76.50, Thrissur 72.52, Ernakulam 72.33, Idukki 72.18, Kottayam 71.98, Alappuzha 74.54, Kollam 69.59, and Thiruvananthapuram 72.2.
The voting percentage was very much in tune with the torrid triangular contest in the State, indicating that political parties had succeeded in their election campaign in bringing voters to the polling booths. Interestingly, the constituencies which witnessed tough battles showed higher percentage of voter turn out, when compared to others.
Constituencies such as Perumbavoor, Kunnathunad in Ernakulam district, Peravur in Kannur, and Thrikkarippur in Kasaragod polled over 80 per cent. In Malappuram district, only Tanur and Tirur crossed the 70 per cent mark. Congress leader A.K. Antony, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, CPI(M) leader Pinarayi Vijayan, Leader of the Opposition V.S. Achuthanandan, BJP State president Kummanam Rajasekharan were among the prominent persons who exercised their franchise.
The focus shifted away from voting percentages late in the evening when exit poll figures dominated debates in television channels and other discussion in public domain.