INDIA VOTES 2024: Capital’s voter apathy on EC radar

Samad Hoque

New Delhi, March 20

The Capital’s voter apathy continues to remain a concern for election authorities, prompting Delhi’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) to launch initiatives aimed at raising voter awareness. The Delhi CEO has initiated various activities under the Electoral Literacy Club (ELC), including voter awareness campaigns and Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) demonstrations in Shahdara district. Additionally, a session on inclusive elections was recently organised in south Delhi in collaboration with Action for Ability Development and Inclusion (AADI) to educate and raise awareness among voters.

As part of the ‘No voter to be left behind’ campaign, the Election Commission will ensure assistance for elderly and People with Disabilities (PwD) with the support of polling officials. This additional effort is in response to Delhi’s consistently low voter turnout compared to national averages.

Delhi witnessed a decline in voter turnout during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, dropping by five points. In 2019, the voter turnout in Delhi was only 60.12 per cent, down from 65.10 per cent in 2014. In contrast, the national voter turnout in 2019 was 67.11 per cent, the highest ever recorded and up from 66.4 per cent in 2014.

In the VVIP constituency of New Delhi, the voter turnout significantly decreased to 56.87 per cent in 2019 compared to 65.11 per cent in 2014. The lowest voter turnout in the New Delhi constituency was recorded in Delhi Cantt, with only 42.13 per cent of voters casting their votes out of the total electors of 1,23,198; only 51,904 turned up.

However, in the New Delhi seat, women voters turned out in slightly higher number compared to men, with a poll percentage of 57.24 for females and 56.58 for males. For the upcoming General Election, the seat will be contested by two major candidates from the BJP and AAP. Bansuri Swaraj, daughter of the late BJP stalwart Sushma Swaraj, will compete against Somnath Bharti from the AAP.

In a previous analysis by The Tribune, it was observed that the female voter population in the constituency decreased by 6.7 per cent compared to 2014.

In the Chandni Chowk parliamentary constituency, the lowest voter turnout in 2019 was registered at Adarsh Nagar with 57.93 per cent. In northeast Delhi, Timarpur had the lowest turnout at 60.04 per cent. In east Delhi, Okhla recorded the lowest at 52.75 per cent, while Nangloi Jat in northwest Delhi registered 54.04 per cent.

In west Delhi, Vikaspuri had the lowest turnout at 56.07 per cent, and in south Delhi, Badarpur recorded 54.82 per cent. Conversely, the highest voter turnout in the 2019 elections was recorded in northeast Delhi with 63.38 per cent. Despite facing violence prior to the LS elections, the area managed to achieve the highest voter turnout. Within northeast Delhi, Gokalpuri, Seemapuri, Rohtas Nagar, Seelampur and Mustafabad recorded the highest poll percentages.