The voting for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha Elections began on Monday in 96 constituencies across 10 states and Union Territories. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, urged people to cast their votes in large numbers, emphasizing the importance of participating in the democratic process.

A total of 1,717 candidates are contesting in the Lok Sabha seats, and more than 19 lakh polling officials have been deployed at 1.92 lakh polling stations to facilitate the voting process for over 17.70 crore eligible voters. This includes 8.73 crore women, underscoring the significant participation of female voters in this round of the seven-phase polls.

Madhya Pradesh 

Officials documented an average voter turnout of 14.97 percent until 9 am on Monday in eight Lok Sabha constituencies in Madhya Pradesh, PTI reported. Polling is underway in the fourth and final phase of the state’s general elections, and the results are scheduled for June 4.

Voting commenced at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm across the eight constituencies, which collectively house 18,007 polling stations, as confirmed by officials. 

Among these constituencies, the polling percentages were as follows: Dewas 16.79 percent, Dhar 15.61 percent, Indore 11.48 percent, Khandwa 14.68 percent, Khargone 15.35 percent, Mandsour 16.61 percent, Ratlam 13.73 percent, and Ujjain 16.80 percent, according to PTI report. 

Of the total 29 seats in Madhya Pradesh, polling for 21 seats occurred in three phases on April 19, April 26, and May 7. 

While rains disrupted polling in certain areas of the Khandwa Lok Sabha seat and elsewhere, voting proceeded peacefully, as reported by Madhya Pradesh’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Anupam Rajan.

Jharkhand 

Nearly 12 percent voter turnout by 9 am in four Lok Sabha constituencies in Jharkhand was recorded according to the Election officials on Monday, PTI reported. These constituencies include Singhbhum, Lohardaga, Khunti, and Palamu. 

Voting commenced at 7 am and will continue until 5 pm, with stringent security measures in place. According to PTI, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) K Ravi Kumar disclosed that a total of 30,380 polling officials have been deployed across 7,595 booths to oversee the electoral process.

In the Maoist-affected Singhbhum constituency, the voter turnout stood at approximately 12.67 percent by 9 am. Similarly, Khunti, Lohardaga, and Palamu recorded turnouts of about 12.20 percent, 10.97 percent, and 11.47 percent, respectively, during the same period. 

The eligible electorate comprises over 64.37 lakh individuals, including 32.07 lakh women and 42 individuals identifying as third gender, who are entitled to exercise their voting rights. 

Uttar Pradesh

Until 9 am on Monday, Uttar Pradesh witnessed a voter turnout of 11.67 percent as polling progressed in 13 Lok Sabha constituencies during the fourth phase of the seven-phase general elections, PTI reported. 

Polling began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm. According to figures released by the Election Commission (EC), Akbarpur constituency recorded 12.16 percent turnout, Bahraich 14.04 percent, Dhaurahra 13.96 percent, Etawah 7.06 percent, Farrukhabad 13.15 percent, Hardoi 13.17 percent, Kannauj 14.23 percent, Kanpur 7.84 percent, Kheri 12.21 percent, Misrikh 12.92 percent, Shahjahanpur 5.94 percent, Sitapur 14.28 percent, and Unnao 11.85 percent. 

A bypoll is also underway for the Dadraul assembly constituency in Shahjahanpur district, following the demise of BJP MLA Manvendra Singh on January 5 due to prolonged illness. The constituency witnessed a turnout of 12.70 percent by 9 am, with 10 candidates contesting for the vacant seat, as per the commission’s data. 

In this phase, over 2.46 crore individuals are eligible to cast their votes in the state.

Maharashtra

A voter turnout of 6.45 percent was reported at 9 am on Monday, as polling commenced in 11 out of the 48 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra during the fourth phase of the general elections, according to a PTI report.

The polling began at 7 am and is scheduled to conclude at 6 pm in the Nandurbar, Jalgaon, Raver, Jalna, Aurangabad, Maval, Pune, Shirur, Ahmednagar, Shirdi, and Beed constituencies, PTI reported.

A total of 298 candidates are contesting in these constituencies, with Beed having the highest number of candidates at 41, and Nandurbar with the lowest at 11.

The eligible electorate for the fourth phase elections in the state amounts to 2.28 crore voters, comprising 1.18 crore men, 1.09 crore women, and 1,272 individuals identifying as third-gender voters.

Within these 11 constituencies, there are 23,284 polling centers, 83 of which have been identified as critical.

Voting is being conducted utilizing 53,959 ballot units, 23,284 control units, and 23,284 VVPAT machines, as reported by the official.

Maharashtra possesses 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh’s 80 seats. Among these, voting has already been completed in 24 seats during the first three phases of elections.

West Bengal

At 9 am on Monday, a voter turnout of 15.24 percent was recorded in eight Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal where polling was underway, PTI reported

The polling process began at 7 am in the following constituencies: Baharampur, Krishnanagar, Ranaghat (SC), Bardhaman Purba (SC), Bardhaman–Durgapur, Asansol, Bolpur (SC), and Birbhum, with stringent security measures in place.

A total of 1,45,30,017 voters, consisting of 73,84,356 men, 71,45,379 women, and 282 third-gender individuals, are eligible to exercise their franchise across 15,507 polling stations on Monday.

Telangana 

Telangana registered a voter turnout of 9.51 percent at 9 am on Monday, as polling continued for 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state, as reported by PTI.

Polling, which commenced at 7 am, is scheduled to conclude by 6 pm, except in a few areas where it will end two hours earlier.