Almost half of Bengaluru‘s eligible voters did not show up to cast their votes during the Lok Sabha elections on Friday.
Across Karnataka’s 14 constituencies, the Election Commission reported an estimated voter turnout of 69.23 per cent.
As reported by PTI, however, the voter turnout in the three urban constituencies of Bangalore—Bangalore Central, Bangalore North, and Bangalore South—was notably lower than the overall state average. Despite the Election Commission’s reported 69.23 per cent turnout across Karnataka’s 14 constituencies, these three urban areas saw a smaller percentage of voters exercising their right to vote.
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The estimated voter turnout in Bangalore Central for this election was 52.81 per cent, in Bangalore North it was 54.42 per cent, and in Bangalore South, it was 53.15 per cent. Comparatively, in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, voter turnout in Bangalore Central was 54.32 per cent, in Bangalore North it was 54.76 per cent, and in Bangalore South it was 53.70 per cent.
Election Commission officials expressed disappointment that voter apathy persisted, despite their extensive efforts to boost participation.
“There is no explanation for it. That is the truth,” a top EC official said.
According to poll officials, scorching summer heat is said to be one of the reasons for the people not turning up at polling booths in the city.
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However, Bangalore Rural saw an approximate voter turnout of 67.29 per cent.
Mandya and Kolar had a turnout of 81.48 per cent and 78.07 per cent, respectively.
The Election Commission in Karnataka introduced several initiatives to increase voter turnout in urban constituencies during this election. Measures included encouraging the use of various apps and adding QR codes on voter slips to help voters locate polling booths.
Other efforts involved providing information about the number of people in queue and parking facilities at polling stations in Bengaluru, along with an extensive booth election management plan.
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The Voter Helpline and ‘Know Your Candidate’ apps were part of the drive to simplify the voting process. The Election Commission also improved facilities at polling stations in urban constituencies, based on feedback from surveys conducted in areas with historically low voter turnout in the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections and previous Lok Sabha elections.
These initiatives aimed to make voting more accessible and efficient, addressing some of the key concerns that had previously discouraged voter participation.
(With inputs from PTI)
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