Politics

Odisha Assembly Elections 2019: Naveen Patnaik's fate to be decided in phase two; 7% voter turnout in first two hours

Updated : April 18, 2019 12:32 PM IST

The electoral fortunes of 279 candidates, including Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Union minister Jual Oram, will be decided in the second phase of voting.

Over 76.93 lakh voters will decide the fate of 279 candidates in Thursday's polling. Out of the total electorate of 76,93,123, there are 37,47,493 women voters. At least 605 electors belong to the third gender.

Long queues of voters were seen at polling stations in Aska, Kandhamal, Sundergarh, Bargarh and Bolangir Lok Sabha constituencies, and the 35 assembly segments coming under these areas, as polling commenced at 7 am.

Odisha Assembly Elections 2019: Naveen Patnaik's fate to be decided in phase two; 7% voter turnout in first two hours

Around 7 percent voter turnout was recorded in the first two hours of polling Thursday in five Lok Sabha and 35 assembly constituencies in Odisha.

The electoral fortunes of 279 candidates, including Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Union minister Jual Oram, will be decided in the second phase of voting.

Voting is being held a day after Maoists gunned down a woman poll official, and set ablaze two poll vehicles and a motorcycle on way to booths on Wednesday, police said.

Both the incidents occurred at separate places in the Naxal-hit Kandhamal district, where the red rebels have asked people to boycott elections. Authorities have taken prompt steps to ensure smooth polling in the area.

An estimated 7 per cent of the voters have exercised their franchise during the first two hours of polling till 9 am, and voting is gradually picking up, officials said.

Glitches in EVMs caused a delay in the start of polling in around 50 booths in different places under Aska, Sundargarh, Kandhamal, Sundergarh and Bolangir constituencies, they said.

"Polling is in progress in a peaceful and smooth manner. There has been no untoward incident anywhere, though glitches in EVMs delayed the start of voting in some places. The snags were immediately corrected," said an official.

Prominent among the early voters include BJD Rajya Sabha member and former Odisha minister Prasanna Acharya, and Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram, who voted in Bargarh and Sundargarh, respectively, where they are also in the fray for Lok Sabha polls.

Meanwhile, repolling is also being held in two polling stations located in Malkangiri (ST) and Berhampur Assembly constituencies, following reports of glitches in EVMs during the first phase of polling on April 11.

Lok Sabha and assembly elections are being held simultaneously in Odisha in four phases.

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