Voters wait in a queue to cast their votes at a polling booth
Credit: PTI Photo
Patna: Women outdid men by 14 percentage points and more in voter turnout in seven districts of Bihar, where assembly elections were recently held, as per the Election Commission.
In 10 other districts, the gap was over 10 percentage points.
Patna, however, was the only district in the state to have recorded more turnout of men than women. A total of 57.88 per cent of the women voters in the district exercised their franchise, while 60.05 per cent of the men voted in the polls.
Bihar's 243 assembly seats went to the polls in two phases on November 6 and 11. Results will be declared on November 14.
Bihar registered a historic voter turnout of 67.13 per cent, the highest-ever in the state. Women's voter turnout was 71.78 per cent, while polling percentage among men was 62.98, as per an EC statement.
EC's latest gender-wise data regarding voter turnout in all 38 districts showed that Supaul recorded the biggest gap at 20.71 percentage points, as 83.69 per cent of the women exercised their franchise, while 62.98 per cent of the men voted in the polls.
A wide gap in favour of women was also recorded in Kishanganj (19.5 per cent), Madhubani (18.4), Gopalganj (17.72), Araria (14.43), Darbhanga (14.41) and Madhepura (14.24).
Districts where women's voter turnout was over 10 percentage points more than that of men were Siwan (13.83), Purnea (13.36), Sheohar (12.48), Sitamarhi (12.43), Saharsa (12.37), Purvi Champaran (11.13), Paschim Champaran (11.03), Khagaria (10.66), Samastipur (10.64) and Banka (10.53).
In the first phase of polling on November 6 in 121 assembly seats, women's voter turnout was 69.04 per cent, while polling percentage among men was 61.56. In the second phase of polling, women's voter turnout was 74.56 per cent, whereas it was 64.41 per cent for men.
Kishanganj district recorded the highest women voter turnout at 88.57 per cent, followed by Katihar (84.13), Supaul (83.69), Purnea (83.66), Araria (78.27), Paschim Champaran (77.74) and Purvi Champaran (77.49).
A total of 7.45 crore electors were eligible to cast their votes in the Bihar polls. While a total of 3.75 crore voters (1.98 crore men and 1.76 crore women) were eligible to exercise their franchise in the first phase, in the second phase, the number of voters was 3.7 crore (1.95 crore men and 1.74 crore women).