55.92 lakh voters to decide fate of 412 candidates today in Himachal

Shimla, November 11

A total of 55.92 lakh voters will decide the fate of 412 candidates, including 24 women, in the Assembly elections tomorrow.

The blitz campaign for the elections concluded yesterday and the candidates today went door to door to seek votes. Polling in the 68 Assembly constituencies will be held from 8 am to 5 pm. The counting of votes will take place on December 8.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur left for his native place in Seraj, where he would cast his vote. HPCC president Pratibha Singh also left for Rampur.

Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Maneesh Garg urged people to cast their votes tomorrow so that the polling percentage is higher than the previous polling. “Even the Election Commission of India has saluted Himachal for ensuring peaceful and participative elections,” he said. The 2017 Assembly elections had recorded 75.57 per cent polling while in the 2012 elections, 72.69 per cent voters had cast their votes.

To ensure peaceful elections, 11,847 Himachal Police personnel and 8,381 Home Guard jawans, including from Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, have been deployed across the state. “The Union Home Ministry has provided 67 companies of the Central Armed Police Force to ensure smooth conduct of elections,” said a police official. He added that 108 barriers and entry points along the inter-state borders had been sealed and 232 flying squads and 232 static surveillance teams had been deployed for the elections.

A total of 31,536 government employees are on election duty. There are 28,54,945 male voters and 27,37,845 female voters while there are 38 transgender, besides 22 NRIs. There are 1.93 lakh first-time voters whose votes could prove to be crucial.

However, the Election Department as well as the candidates fear that inclement weather conditions and snowfall in the higher reaches of Lahaul and Spiti can result in a low voter turnout.