VISAKHAPATNAM: Visakhapatnam Parliamentary constituency has the dubious distinction of recording the lowest turnout of 67.26 per cent in the State, which is also less than the 2014 polling.
Anakapalle Lok Sabha constituency also witnessed polling percentage of 81 per cent (in 2014 it recorded 81.71 per cent), while the Araku LS segment recorded 73.67 per cent turnout with an increase of nearly 2.3 per cent (it was 71.31 per cent in 2014).
According to the district election authorities, total voting percentage of the district is 71.82 per cent and Araku LS and Anakapalle LS constituencies recorded more than the district overall percentage, while Visakhapatnam LS constituency lagged behind by recording only 67.26 per cent (around 4 per cent less than the district average) A total of 10.08 lakh electors did not exercise their franchise in the 2019 general elections.
As per the election figures released by the district election authorities, it is known that out of 35.78 lakh voters of the district, around 10.08 lakh (21.17 per cent) did not exercise their constitutional right. Among them, 5.97 lakh electors belonged to the city.
It is evident that all the voter awareness activities, and voter pledge programmes conducted across the city went in vain. The male voters in particular did not show interest in casting vote.
While the young and females voters tried their best to vote on the polling day, male electors were indifferent. Out of the total 9,14,731 male voters, around 3,07,697 did not participate in the polling whereas 2,89,894 female voters out of 9,10,922 did not take part in the polling.
Technical problems in EVMs, incomplete distribution of voter slips in the city and summer heat discouraged most of the city electors from going to the polling booth.
In Visakhapatnam LS limits, among all seven assembly segments, Vizag West witnessed lowest polling percentage in the state with only 58.19. Out of the total 2,36,310 electors, only 1,42,652 voters participated in the polling.
Even in Gajuwaka, the largest assembly segment in the district, out of the 3,09,326 electors, only 2,02,094 voters exercised their constitutional right and 1.07 lakh stayed away from the polling.