Lok Sabha polls 2024: Maharashtra to vote in five phases from April 19 to May 20

Maharashtra, the state with the second-most Lok Sabha seats, will hold the 2024 general elections in five phases. The polls in the state are scheduled to be held from April 19 to May 20, with the by-election for the Akola West assembly seat during the second phase of voting.

The elections will take place on April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, and May 20, with all six constituencies in Mumbai voting in the fifth phase. In 2019, the polls were conducted over four phases, while in 2014, they were held in three phases.

In the first phase on April 19, five constituencies in Vidarbha, including Ramtek, Nagpur, Bhandara-Gondia, Gadchiroli-Chimur, and Chandrapur, will cast their votes.

In the second phase on April 26, constituencies in Vidarbha and Marathwada regions – Buldhana, Akola, Amravati, Yavatmal Washim, Hingoli, Nanded, Parbhani - will exercise their franchise.

Solapur, Madha, Sangli, Satara, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Kolhapur, Raigad, Baramati, Osmanabad, Latur, and Hatkanangle will cast their votes in the third phase on May 7. On May 13, Nandurbar, Jalgaon, Raver, Jalna, Aurangabad, Maval, Pune, Shirur, Ahmednagar, Shirdi, and Beed will vote in the fourth phase of the polls.

On May 20, in the fifth phase, a total of 13 seats will be up for grabs, including Dhule, Dindori, Nashik, Palghar, Bhiwandi, Kalyan, Thane, and six seats in Mumbai – Mumbai North, Mumbai North-West, Mumbai North-East, Mumbai North-Central, Mumbai South-Central, and Mumbai South. This phase will see the highest number of constituencies going to polls in the state.

A total of 9.2 crore individuals, including more than 50,000 centenarians, are eligible to exercise their franchise in the Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra, an increase of 34 lakh from 2019, as reported by PTI.

According to Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer S Chockalingam, the state currently has 4,78,50,789 male and 4,41,74,722 female voters, with 5,559 transgender voters as of March 15.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP won 23 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra while its then ally Shiv Sena secured 18 seats.