Wednesday, May 8

Lok Sabha Elections Phase 2 Live Updates: Tripura Leads With 77.53% Voter Turnout Till 5 pm; UP At Lowest With 52.74%

Edited by Hiba Anvar
Lok Sabha Election Phase 2 Live Updates: Tripura Leads With 77.53% Voter Turnout Till 5 pm; UP At Lowest With 52.74% (image- twitter/@ECISVEEP)

The second phase of voting for the Lok Sabha election begins today. 89 seats across 13 states and Union territories will go to polls on Friday. At 9 am, 9.3% voter turnout was recorded across 13 states and union territories. Chhattisgarh and Manipur recorded over 15% voter turnout while Maharashtra recorded the lowest turnout at over 7% polling. In 2019, over 10% polling was recorded in these 88 seats till 9 am. Over 1,200 candidates including 4 candidates from outer Manipur, are contesting the polls. 

A third of the total 543 Lok Sabha seats including all the seats in Kerala, Rajasthan, Manipur and Tripura, and 14 of the 28 seats in Karnataka will poll. Among prominent candidates are Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar (Thiruvananthapuram), Shashi Tharoor of the Congress (Thiruvananthapuram) and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (Wayanad).

07:10 PM, April 26, 2024: Polling has been concluded for constituencies in Rajasthan (Jhalawar) and West Bengal (Raiganj).

07:05 PM, April 26, 2024: Voter turnout till 5 pm for states stands at Tripura leading with 77.53%, followed by Manipur (76.06%), Chhattisgarh (72.13%), West Bengal (71.84%) and Assam (70.66 percent).

Other states registered voter turnouts as follows: Jammu and Kashmir (67.22%), Kerala (63.97%), Karnataka (63.90%), Rajasthan (59.19%), Madhya Pradesh (54.83%), Maharashtra (53.51%) and Bihar (53.03%)

The lowest turnout has been registered in Uttar Pradesh with 52.74% till 5 pm.

05:32 PM, April 26, 2024: Tripura continues to lead in terms of voter turnouts with 68.92% recorded till 3pm. Other states and their voter turnouts are as follows: Manipur (68.48%), Chhattisgarh (63.92%), West Bengal (60.6%), and Assam (60.32%).

Jammu and Kashmir has registered a 57.76% voter turnout followed by Kerala with 51.64%, Karnataka’s 50.93%, Rajasthan’s 50.27%, Madhya Pradesh’s 46.68%, Bihar’s 44.24% and Uttar Pradesh’s 44.13%.

Maharashtra continues to record the lowest voter turnout in the phase 2 of the elections with 43.01%.

04:13 PM, April 26, 2024: Cricketer Mohammed Shami arrives at polling booth in Amroha to cast his vote. He after casting the vote said, “I just want to say that every citizen has the right to cast their votes and elect the government of their choice…It is a matter of pride for me that PM Modi took my name during his speech and praised me and my game…”

04:03 PM, April 26, 2024: Samajwadi Party chief and candidate from Kannauj Akhilesh Yadav says, “This is a long fight regarding VVPAT, EVM and ballot paper…Whatever decision Supreme Court takes, everybody will accept that but the fight won’t stop…make INDIA alliance and Samajwadi Party win and remove EVM”.

04:02 PM, April 26, 2024: Voter turnout till 3 pm for phase 2 in other states are as follows: Assam 60.32% Bihar 44.24% Chhattisgarh 63.32% Jammu And Kashmir 57.76% Karnataka 50.93% Kerala 51.64% Madhya Pradesh 46.50% Maharashtra 43.01% Manipur 68.48% Rajasthan 50.27% Tripura 68.92% Uttar Pradesh 44.13% West Bengal 60.60%

03:58 PM, April 26, 2024: Madhya Pradesh records 46.50% voter turnout till 3 pm. While Maharashtra records the lowest with 43.01% and Tripura records the highest with 68.92%.

03:40 PM, April 26, 2024: South Indian Actor Mammootty was spotted at polling booth in Ernakulam to cast vote.

02:00 PM, April 26, 2024: Tripura has recorded a voter turnout of 54.47% – the highest – till 1 pm. Closely behind the state is Manipur with 54.26% and Chhattisgarh with 53.09%. Kerala has recorded a voter turnout of 39.26% till 1 pm. Maharashtra stands with 31.77 percent voter turnout, the lowest among the states so far.

01:50 PM, April 26, 2024: Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka and Congressman DK Shivakumar took to X and wrote, “Cast my vote today for democracy, saving the soul of our nation!”

01:00 PM, April 26, 2024: The EC shared more photos of voters arriving to cast their votes. Citizens from Raima Valley AS remote area of Dhalai district in Tripura arrived in boats to their polling stations. Meanwhile, voters in Assam, Maharashtra, and Jammu and Kashmir also cast their votes in the second phase of elections.

12:30 PM, April 26, 2024: ISRO Chief S. Somnath cast his vote in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Meanwhile, former ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan urged first-time voters in Kerala to be glad to be a part of the system and vote for the candidates they find more suitable for them. He added a word of advice: “The only message I will give to the younger generation is to make sure you vote and go to the polling booth at the earliest before the sun comes very hot…”

12:15 PM, April 26, 2024: According to the Election Commission, as of 11 am, the single constituency in Tripura has recorded the highest turnout with over 36.42% eligible voters having cast their votes. Meanwhile the lowest turnout was recorded in the eight Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra.

The EC shared glimpses of citizens across Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh at their polling stations.

12:03 PM, April 26, 2024: Indian cricket coach and former captain, Rahul Dravid was spotted standing in a line to cast his vote.

11:53 AM, April 26, 2024: Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, cast his vote at Kannur’s Pinarayi RC Amala School.


11:28 AM, April 26, 2024: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor after casting his vote, urges the people of India to exercise their franchise today. He wrote on X, “Began the day by lining up and casting my vote. Urging all my fellow Trivandrum residents (and those in constituencies voting in this phase) to fulfil their civic duties and exercise their franchise today. Our democracy thrives when we all participate and each vote will go on to shape the future of our India. Your vote is your voice—let us make it count!”

11:00 AM, April 26, 2024: Election Commission shares glimpses of people from different polling booths across the country. 

10:15 AM, April 26, 2024: Congress MP and candidate from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor after casting the vote said, “.This election is about far greater than my own future. It is about India’s future. It is about changing the government in Delhi. We are here to restore democracy, restore faith in diversity and restore India’s pluralism…The Left also claims they are also critical of BJP but they they’ve never said a world against BJP.”

9:59 AM, April 26, 2024: Madhya Pradesh records 13.82 % voter turnout in initial trend till 9 am. Maharashtra records the lowest with 7.45%. Tripura records the highest with 16.65%.

9:10 AM, April 26, 2024: Former chief minister of Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot after casting the vote expressed his confidence in winning double-digit seats in Rajasthan. “”We feel that the Congress will win double-digit seats in Rajasthan, we should not be surprised…Votes hold a great significance. To strengthen democracy, it is important that we vote in large numbers…These elections are not mere elections, these are polls to save the Constitution…”, he said.

8:40 AM, April 26, 2024: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman casts her vote at BES polling booth in Bengaluru. After casting the vote, she says, “want more and more people to come out and vote…I think it is clear that people want a stable government, they want good policies, progress and development and that is why they are coming out. They want to see PM Modi continue his term …”

8:00 AM, April 26, 2024: After casting the vote, actor Prakash Raj through his X handle urges the citizens of India to cast their vote.

7:45 AM, April 26, 2024: NDA Candidate and film star from Thrissur Suresh Gopi casts his vote at a polling station. “The nation will see the participation of Kerala in national development movement,” he said.

7:40 AM, April 26, 2024: After casting the vote, VD Satheesan said that they are expecting to swoop all the 20 parliamentary seats. “Our assessment is that we will get all 20 seats. There is a silent trend against the current state and Central government. I hope Congress-led INDIA front will come back….,

7:30 AM, April 26, 2024: VD Satheesan, Kerala Leader of Opposition cast his vote at a polling booth in North Paravoor under Ernakulam Parliamentary constituency.


7:10 AM, April 26, 2024: Infosys founder Narayana Murthy casts their vote at BES polling station in Bengaluru. After casting his vote in the Lok Sabha polls, he says, “Once in every five years, we get an opportunity to execute the right given by our constitution, to chose whatever candidate from whichever party he/she is, to govern us. Today is a very happy day. Today is the day when we should all be enthusiastic to exercise our power.”

7:00 AM, April 26, 2024: Polling Begins.