Campaigning ends for Jharkhand’s first phase Assembly elections; 43 seats to go to polls on Wed

Ranchi: Campaigning for 43 of Jharkhand’s 81 Assembly seats came to a close on Monday, ahead of the state’s first phase of elections scheduled for November 13. This phase will see 1.37 crore eligible voters out of 2.6 crore cast their votes.

The campaign witnessed a high-profile battle between the two main political alliances—the NDA and the INDIA bloc—whose star campaigners, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, and other senior leaders, rallied for their party candidates.

A total of 683 candidates, comprising 609 men, 73 women, and one third-gender nominee, are contesting across 43 constituencies. Among these, 17 seats are reserved for general candidates, 20 for scheduled tribes, and 6 for scheduled castes. The polling will take place at 15,344 booths, with 12,716 in rural areas and 2,628 in urban regions.

Chief Electoral Officer K Ravi Kumar confirmed that all election-related preparations are complete. Polling personnel were dispatched to 194 polling stations on Monday, with the remaining 31 booths set to receive their staff by Tuesday.

Voting will occur from 7 am to 5 pm, though in 950 booths, voting will conclude at 4 pm, with those in line at that time still allowed to cast their ballots. In an initiative to ensure inclusivity, women will oversee the voting process at 1,152 polling stations, and 24 booths will be managed by disabled personnel.Since the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct, authorities have seized illegal materials and cash worth Rs 179.14 crore.

A total of 54 cases of violation have been registered, as officials work to ensure a free and fair election.