Thiruvananthapuram: Voting for the first phase of the Kerala local body elections began this morning in seven districts. Polling started at 7 am and will continue until 6 pm. Officials have said that voters who receive a token before closing time will still be allowed to vote.
The districts voting today are Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki and Ernakulam. A total of 595 local bodies are included in this phase, covering gram panchayats, municipalities, block panchayats, district panchayats and corporations.
Election officials reported that around 1.32 crore registered voters are eligible to participate. Among them are men, women and a small number of transgender voters. More than 36 thousand candidates are in the contest, including one transgender candidate.
To manage the voting process, 15,432 polling booths have been arranged across the seven districts. About 480 booths have been identified as sensitive and will have additional monitoring and security arrangements.
In two wards, polling has been postponed due to the death or withdrawal of candidates. These include one ward under Kochi Corporation and another in Pampakadu gram panchayat in Ernakulam district.
Special arrangements have been made for senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Pink booths operated by women officers have also been set up in some areas to encourage more participation from women voters.
This is the first phase of the local body elections in the state. The second phase will take place on December 11. Votes will be counted on December 13.
Officials have urged people to vote early and follow polling rules to ensure a smooth and peaceful election process.