Lok Sabha polls: Your guide to Phase 2 voting today, weather forecast, key facts (2024)

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Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Here's your guide to Phase 2 voting on April 26:

1. Which Lok Sabha constituencies are voting in Phase 2?

The voting will take place in 88 constituencies across 13 states/UTs. These states include Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Manipur, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Tap here to check if voting will take place in your constituency on April 26.

The EC mentioned that the polling for the 29-Betul parliamentary constituency in Madhya Pradesh was rescheduled in the third phase due to the death of a candidate from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

The first phase of voting was held on April 19. The elections in the first phase took place for 102 seats across 21 states and UTs. The remaining f phases of polls will continue till June 1 with the counting of votes scheduled on June 4.

2. How is the weather for Friday, April 26?

The Election Commission said the weather conditions are predicted to be "within normal ranges". It added that electors can cast their votes comfortably. "...meticulous arrangements have been made at all polling stations including facilities, to deal with hot weather conditions," the EC said on Thursday.

Meanwhile, a hailstorm has been predicted for Jammu and Kashmir on April 26 and for Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand on April 27. Earlier, a red alert over a severe heatwave was issued in West Bengal until April 26.

3. Key facts about Phase 2 voting

A. Date and Time of voting: Voting will begin at 7 and end at 6 pm. The closure of poll timings may differ parliamentary constituencies wise.

The polling time was extended till 6 pm in many polling stations in Banka, Madhepura, Khagaria and Munger constituencies in Bihar to facilitate voters in hot weather conditions.

The voting for Phase 2 of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 will be held on April 26, 2024, for 88 Lok Sabha constituencies (General- 73; ST- 6; SC-9) in 13 States/ UTs.

B. Number of voters in Phase 2: Over 16 lakh polling officials will welcome over 15.88 crore voters across 1.67 lakh polling stations, the EC said.

As many as 8.08 crore of the total voters are men, 7.8 crore are women and 5,929 identified themselves as third gender. There are 34.8 lakh first-time voters. Moreover, there are 3.28 crore young voters in the age group 20-29 years.

C. Total candidates in the fray: As many as 1202 candidates -- 1,098 men, 102 men and two belonging to the third gender category -- are in the fray.

4. Who are the key candidates in the fray in Phase 2?

The key candidates in Phase 2 polls include Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor, BJP's youth icon Tejasvi Surya and Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar. There are four candidates from the Outer Manipur parliamentary constituency.

Tap here to check key candidates and battles to look out for in Phase 2 voting.

5. How to know if your candidate has any criminal record?

The EC has informed about the "Know your candidate" application where citizens can get information about the candidate contesting in their constituency.

“Whether the candidate has a criminal background, whether there are criminal cases against him, or what are their assets and liabilities – voters have the right to have all this information through the KYC app," the Chief Election Commissioner said.

Voters can also find details about candidates on the Voter Helpline app. Check step-by-step guide to use these apps here

6. How to check poll dates and polling station details?

The EC has shared a website link for voters to check their polling station details and poll date. One needs to visit this website https://electoralsearch.eci.gov.in/ and enter EPIC Number and State name to check details.

7. What documents should one bring to polling station?

The Election Commission has also provided 12 alternative documents other than a Voter id card (EPIC) for identity verification at polling stations. If a voter is registered in the electoral roll, voting can be done by showing any of these documents.

Here's the link to the ECI order for alternative identification documents: https://www.eci.gov.in/eci-backend/public/api/download?url=LMAhAK6sOPBp%2FNFF0iRfXbEB1EVSLT41

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Published: 26 Apr 2024, 06:14 AM IST