The Election Commission of India (ECI) held a ‘Conference on Low Voter Turnout’ on Friday to efforts to enhance voter turnout in Parliamentary Constituencies (PCs) with a history of low poll participation in previous General Elections when approximate 297 million eligible voters did not vote. Furthermore, recent elections across various states have highlighted trends of urban apathy towards the electoral process, warranting targeted interventions and collaborative endeavours.
The discussions of Friday’s conference were centred on critical issues such as optimizing queue management at polling stations, facilitating voting in high-rise buildings, and leveraging the influential Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) programme.
The conference was chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar along with Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu. On the occasion, a booklet on voter apathy was released by the Commission.
Addressing the event, CEC said that a total of 266 Parliamentary Constituencies (215 Rural & 51 Urban) with low voter turnout have been identified and emphasized on a three pronged strategy of providing facilitation at polling stations like queue management, shelter parking in congested areas; targeted outreach and communication; and involvement of critical stakeholders like RWAs, local icons and youth influencers to persuade people to come to polling stations
Kumar directed the Municipal Commissioners (MCs) and District Election Officers (DEOs) to prepare a booth wise action plan for enhanced participation and behaviour change. He also asked them to prepare different strategies for urban and rural areas and plan interventions accordingly for different target audiences, emphasizing that the “One size fits all” approach will not yield results. CEC Kumar also urged the authorities to act in a manner that instils pride among the voters in participating in the democratic festivities. He called for a movement in which people are self-motivated to vote.
With a keen emphasis on partnership and inclusivity, the ECI urged MCs and DEOs to actively contribute to the initiative. Urban specific hurdles to increased voter turnout were identified and targeted city specific interventions were planned and the officers were encouraged to develop tailored, region-specific outreach programs that resonate with the unique needs and demographics of their constituencies.
The Conference was attended by Municipal Commissioners from major cities and select District Election Officers (DEOs) that recorded low voter turnout in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
Out of the total 50 Rural PCs across 11 states identified with lower voter turnout than the national average in 2019, 40 PCs are from Uttar Pradesh (22 PCs) and Bihar (18PCs). In UP, 51- Phulpur PC recorded the lowest turnout of 48.7%, while in Bihar, 29-Nalanda PC recorded lowest turnout of 48.79%.
11 States/UTs namely Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, NCT of Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Telangana, Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan, J&K and Jharkhand had a voter turnout lower than the national average of 67.40% in the 2019 General Elections to the Lok Sabha.
