The hill state of Himachal Pradesh witnessed the record voter turnout in the Assembly polls 2017 held on Thursday at 74.6 per cent.

The record turnout this year surpassed poll turnout of 74.51 per cent in 2003 elections.

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And while the political parties may have given a raw deal to the women candidates- fielding only 19 of them in this election in the entire state- the enthusiasm among women voters was more, as 19,10582 (77.75%) females cast their votes against 18,11,061 (71.5%) males in the state.

The total voters in HP are 50,25941 out of which 25,31321 are males and 24,57032 are females.

However, since 1982, the state has always witnessed over 70 per cent voter turnout, barring once in 1990 when it was 67.74 per cent, and change of guard since 1985.

The Election department officials attribute the increase in polling percentage this time to sustained campaign on voter awareness in HP.

“The voters in Himachal are literate and aware. But our campaign has also worked well to push the voter turnout further. People came out to cast their vote in remotest of areas,” said Neeraj Sharma, Officer on Special Duty, Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP), Elections, Himachal Pradesh told The Statesman.

On ground, the elaborate arrangements were made by Election Commission to ensure that all sections of voters come out to exercise their franchise, including the disabled.

The details released by Election Commission on Friday highlights that Sirmaur district, that houses one of the most backward areas in Himachal, registered the highest polling percentage this time at 81.05 per cent. The developed and highly literate district of Hamirpur recorded the lowest voter turnout at 70.19 per cent.

The voters in distant tribal areas too turned out in great numbers in all the three Assembly segments- in Lahaul Spiti, the polling percentage was 73.49 per cent and I some booths, the people stood in queue to cast their vote till late evening, as the snag in EVMs delayed the polling.

As many as 74.61 per cent voters exercised their franchise in Kinnaur, and in Bharmour tribal constituency of Chamba, 72.23 per cent voters came out to participate in the democratic exercise.

Doon Assembly constituency in Solan district topped in the voter turnout in the entire state at 88.95 per cent, followed by distant Seraj in Mandi at 83.20 per cent.

Three or four cornered contest on some Assembly seats, with BJP and Congress rebels in fray, is also considered as the reason for high polling. A live example is Shimla Assembly seat, which saw the lowest 51 per cent voter turnout in the state in 2012 polls, has witnessed 63.76 per cent. In this constituency, the contest was between BJP, Congress, CPM and a Independent (Congress rebel).

Political calculations underway

While the fate of the candidates is locked till 18 December– the political parties have started making guesses about their chances.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made the past trend of change in power every five years in Himachal since 1985 (linked with heavy polling) as its strong point.

“Heavy polling is clearly indicative of change in power. People of Himachal have come out with great enthusiasm to vote for BJP and oust the non-performing Congress government in Himachal,” said State Vice President of BJP, Ganesh Dutt.

He said the central issues like GST may have had some impact among traders, but the people have voted on state issues, with all faith in the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress general secretary and spokesman, Naresh Chauhan contradicts.

“It is a positive vote for Congress government as it worked very hard for overall development of the state in five years rule. People have faith on our party and government. We are sure of breaking the trend this time and our government will repeat,” Chauhan said.