The second phase of the Kerala civic body elections began on Thursday. Five districts — Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Wayanad — are going to polls. Of these districts, Thrissur and Ernakulam are Municipal Corporations. The polling began at 7 am on Thursday and has been progressing under the COVID-19 protocols.
Till 10.10 am saw a voter turn out of 24.20 per cent. As per the latest information provided by the State Election Commission (SEC), these districts saw 23 to 25 percent voter turnout — Kottayam (24.70%), Ernakulam (23.94%), Thrissur (24.40%), Palakkad (23.70%) and Wayanad (25.03%). Kochi Municipal Corporation recorded 17.77% polling while Thrissur recorded 19.89%, as per the figures available at 10.10 am.
According to reports, glitches in voting machines delayed voting in a few places like Panancherry in Thrissur and in a ward under the Kochi Corporation.
The first phase of polling was held on Tuesday. Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta and Idukki went to polls in the first phase. The first phase saw a high voter turnout of 72.03% despite the COVID-19 situation.
The third phase of polling will be held on December 14. Elections for Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode and Malappuram will be held in the third phase. The counting will take place on December 16. The Kerala local body election is being held in three phases owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The elections are held for 941 grama panchayats, 152 block panchayats, 14 district panchayats, 86 municipalities and six municipal corporations. A total of 2,71,20,823 voters are eligible to cast their votes. Out of the total 1,200 local bodies in the state, the elections will be held for 1,199 local bodies while the Mattannur Municipality in Kannur district follows a different election calendar. With 50% reservation for women, the number of female candidates is 36,305.