Election officials collect election materials at Maharaja’s College in Ernakulam on Monday. | Photo credit: H. VIBHU
As many as 26,67,746 voters in Ernakulam are expected to decide the fate of more than 7,000 candidates in the fray as the district goes to polls in the first phase of local polls in the state on Tuesday. A total of 7,347 candidates from 2,220 constituencies in 111 local bodies in the district are contesting for the public mandate. Voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m
Election materials were distributed to nearly 14,000 officials designated for duty at 28 distribution centers in the district on Monday. District Collector G. Priyanka visited the distribution center at St. Peter’s Higher Secondary School, Kumbalangi and assessed the poll readiness. Voting will take place in 3,021 polling stations. A total of 7,490 polling units and 3,036 control units have been set up for voting in the constituency.
The 82 panchayats in the district recorded an impressive voter turnout of 81.01% in the previous polls in 2020, while the voting percentage in 13 municipalities was 75.56. Meanwhile, voter turnout in Kochi Corporation was relatively low at 62.04%. Election authorities and political fronts expect to witness an increase in the polling percentage this time compared to 2020, when the polls were held amid pandemic fears.
The webcast will take place in 72 polling stations that the police have identified as sensitive. Apart from this, based on the demands of the concerned candidates and the directive of the Kerala High Court, filming will be allowed in 147 polling booths. “Voters will only be filmed outside the polling station, which protects the secrecy of the voting process. Recording of videos in polling stations will not be allowed. The recorded videos will be kept by the electoral commission. The recordings will not be handed over to political parties or candidates,” said the Collector in a statement on Monday.
Among the voters in the district are 13,88,544 women, 12,79,170 men and 32 transgender people. Candidates and political leaders spent time quietly campaigning, focusing on door-to-door chats with voters, handing out leaflets and visiting influential people on Monday.
Published – 8 Dec 2025 21:41 IST
