KOCHI: The excitement created by the 45-day-long campaigning by political parties reflected in the polls and Ernakulam Lok Sabha constituency witnessed 76.75 per cent turnout of voters on Tuesday. In Ernakulam, the poll per cent in 2014 was 73.58 per cent. Likewise, in Chalakkudy, the other Lok Sabha constituency in Ernakulam district, the poll per cent was 80.11 as compared to 76.93 in 2014.
It seems the intense pre-election drive carried out by district administration along with Election Commission to woo voters succeeded to a certain extent. District Collector K Mohammed Y Safeerulla had earlier said their aim was to increase poll per cent to 80 per cent in Ernakulam.
In Ernakulam, all the polling stations witnessed heavy polling from 7 am onwards. The poll per cent touched 12 per cent after the first three hours of polling. It was in the afternoon that the poll per cent of Ernakulam started to increase. Meanwhile, in Chalakkudy constituency, the poll per cent has seen steady progress and touched 40 pc mark by afternoon.
In many polling stations, there were long queues of voters. Out of the total of 24,86,705 voters in the district, more than 75 per cent cast their votes. However, during the initial hours of the election, in many polling stations, the technical snag of VVPAT machines delayed the commencement of voting. A total of 17 polling stations in the district witnessed technical glitches. The elections in the district were peaceful and no untoward incidents were reported.
The election procedures in the district were extended to early morning on Wednesday. The voting machines will be kept under three-tier security at the storerooms at CUSAT and Kalamassery Polytechnic. The voting machines of Ernakulam constituency will be stored at CUSAT while that of Chalakkudy will be kept under safe custody at Kalamassery Polytechnic.