Assembly By-Poll 2024: Voting Begins In 15 Seats Across UP, Punjab, Kerala and Uttarakhand

New Delhi: Polling commenced for by-elections in 15 Assembly seats across Uttar Presh, Punjab, Kerala, and Uttarakhand on Wednesday.

Notably, nine seats in Uttar Presh--Meerapur, Kundarki, Ghaziab, Khair, Karhal, Sishamau, Phulpur, Katehari, and Majhawan--are up for by-polls.

by-elections in Uttar Presh are significant for National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which suffered a major setback in state, winning only 36 out of 80 seats in last elections.

In Punjab, by-elections are being held in four Assembly constituencies: Gidderbaha, Dera Baba Nanak, Chabbewal (SC), and Barnala.

By-polls are also underway in Kerala's Palakk constituency and Uttarakhand's Kedarnath Assembly constituency.

Earlier, mock polls were conducted in all constituencies to ensure a smooth election day. Election officials have worked tirelessly to finalise preparations, while security arrangements have been tightened across polling stations to ensure a peaceful and orderly voting process for citizens.

Meanwhile, polling for Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand has also begun.

In Maharashtra, voting is taking place across 288 Assembly seats, with several constituencies witnessing high-stakes battles. Key leers in contention include Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, contesting from Kopri-Pachpakhi against Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Kedar Prakash Dighe, and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fnavis, defending his stronghold in Nagpur South West against Congress candidate Prafulla Gudhe.
NCP leer and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is seeking to retain family bastion of Baramati, facing Yungendra Pawar of NCP (SP).

In Jharkhand, 528 candidates, including 55 women, one third-gender candidate, and 472 men, are contesting across 38 seats in this phase. Over 1.23 crore voters, including 61 lakh women, are eligible to cast ir votes.
Prominent candidates in Jharkhand include Chief Minister Hemant Soren, his wife Kalpana Soren, and his sister-in-law Sita Soren from JMM. Key BJP candidates in this phase include former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi, Assembly Speaker Ravindra Nath Mahto (JMM), AJSU Party chief Sudesh Mahto, and Leer of Opposition Amar Kumar Bauri. election primarily pits Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led alliance against BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

(Except for heline, this story has not been edited by Republic and is published from a syndicated feed.)