On Wednesday, September 18, the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir held its first assembly election in a decade. Voting commenced at 7 am and continued until 6 pm, with an overall voter turnout of 58.85% recorded, according to the Election Commission’s Voter Turnout App.
The highest voter turnout was observed in the Kishtwar district at 77.23%, while the lowest was in Pulwama with 43.87%. This election marks the first assembly poll since a controversial delimitation exercise, which allocated 47 assembly seats to Kashmir and 43 to Jammu.
The first phase of the assembly elections is covering seven districts, including parts of Chenab Valley and South Kashmir. More than 23.27 lakh voters — 11.76 lakh men and 11.51 lakh women — are eligible to vote across 24 constituencies.Polling has been reported as peaceful and incident-free.
J&K Chief Electoral Officer P. K. Pole expressed optimism about the turnout, estimating it might exceed 60%.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, J&K L-G Manoj Sinha, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have all encouraged voters to participate actively.
Prominent candidates include Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami of CPI (M), seeking a fifth term from Kulgam, and Ghulam Ahmad Mir of AICC aiming for a third term from Dooru. PDP’s Iltija Mufti and Waheed Para are notable candidates in Srigufwara-Bijbehara and Pulwama, respectively.
The remaining phases of the election are scheduled for September 25 and October 1, with vote counting set for October 8.
