Lok Sabha polls 2024: Voter turnout in Kerala remains lower than 2019

Thiruvanathapuram: The voter turnout in Kerala was 70.35 percent by late on Friday evening. It could to go up further as polling was progressing at many booths across Kerala till late in the evening.

During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections the voter turnout in Kerala was 77.84 percent. Congress-led UDF then had a sweep by winning 19 of the 20 seats.

Many polling booths across the state witnessed brisk polling in the morning and in the afternoon as many voters preferred not to go to the polling booth during the scorching sun.

Among the 20 booths, Alappuzha, Kannur and Kasargod witnessed the highest polling per cent, while Pathanamthitta recorded the lowest polling as per the information available from the Election Commission. Wayanad, where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is contesting also recorded a fall in the voter turnout. While the voter turnout in Wayanad in 2019 was over 80 per cent, this time the voter turnout was only 72 till evening.

While both Congress-led United Democratic Front and CPM-led Left Democratic Front leaders expressed hopes of a clean sweep citing anti-incumbency factor against the BJP government at the centre, BJP leaders expressed hopes of opening an account to the Lok Sabha from Kerala citing the people's resentment towards the CPM and Congress led fronts.

The polling also witnessed a row over CPM central committee member and LDF convenor in Kerala E P Jayarajan's meeting with BJP leaders including Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan openly flayed Jayarajan over the meeting.

With issues like CAA and Manipur violence dominating the electioneering, votes of minority communities that come to over 45 percent ( 27 percent Muslims and 18 percent Christians) would be playing a crucial role. 

Prominent Christian bishops expressed their concerns even on the polling day. While Thiruvananthapuram Latin Catholic Church Archbishop Thomas J Netto told reporters that people should be able to cast their votes in such democratic election processes in future also, Syro-Malabar church major archbishop Raphael Thattil said that country's secularism and communal harmony need to be protected.

Even as 1,800 odd constituencies in Kerala were declared as sensitive, no major law and order problems were reported.