Counting of votes for Wayanad Lok Sabha seat and Palakkad and Chelakkara Assembly seats on November 23

In Wayanad LS constituency, UDF’s Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, LDF’s Sathyan Mokeri, and NDA’ Navya Haridas, among others, are in fray The tight triangular fight for Palakkad Assembly segment has UDF’s Rahul Mamkoottathil pitted against NDA’s C. Krishnakumar and the Left front’s P. Sarin. In Chelakkara Assembly segment, UDF’s Ramya Haridas takes on LDF’s U.R. Pradeep and NDA’s K. Balakrishnan

The votes for the byelections to the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency and the Assembly constituencies of Palakkad and Chelakkara will be counted from 8 a.m. on Saturday. The early trends will become clear in an hour.  

Voter turnout in the three constituencies remained low despite the high-octane campaign taken out by the three major fronts witnessing every bit of drama ranging from accusations and mudslinging to top-level defections. The Wayanad Lok Sabha segment garnered national attention with the Congress fielding Priyanka Gandhi Vadra for the United Democratic Front (UDF) to retain the seat relinquished by her brother Rahul Gandhi. A total of 16 candidates are in the fray in Wayanad, including the Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) Sathyan Mokeri, and the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) Navya Haridas. But the constituency recorded its lowest-ever voter turnout of 64.72%, offering an insipid end to spirited electioneering.  

The counting for Wayanad will take place at eight designated centres across the constituency.  

Assembly byelections 

The byelection to the Palakkad Assembly segment was the most vigorously fought, with two major defections redrawing the poll narrative. All three fronts faced headwinds during the course of electioneering. With the BJP remaining a major force to reckon with in the constituency, Palakkad is being keenly watched for whether it will stay with the UDF or send the second-ever BJP legislator to the Kerala Assembly. The Left Front, which came third in the last two elections, also remains hopeful of a win. The tight triangular fight has UDF’s Rahul Mamkoottathil pitted against NDA’s C. Krishnakumar and the Left front’s P. Sarin.  

However, a drop in voting percentage remains a concern for everyone.  

The counting of votes polled in booth numbers up to 14 will take place in the first round. There were 184 polling booths, including four auxiliary booths, in Palakkad constituency spread across Palakkad municipality and the panchayats of Kannadi, Pirayiri and Mathur. Verification of VVPAT (voter verifiable paper audit trail) slips will be done only after the completion of counting. The VVPAT slips of five polling stations randomly selected will be verified. The result will be declared after that. 

Chelakkara Assembly segment, too, witnessed an intense campaign, with the UDF’s Ramya Haridas taking on LDF’s U.R. Pradeep and NDA’s K. Balakrishnan. The entry of a candidate representing Independent legislator P.V. Anwar’s newly formed party mired the poll scene. Voter turnout in Chelakkara was 72.77%.  

The results will be updated after each round of counting on the election commission’s website, https://results.eci.gov.in.

Published - November 22, 2024 08:34 pm IST