Voter turnout dips to 64% in Atmakur by poll

By Our Special Correspondent

Out of 2.11 lakh voters in Atmakur Assembly constituency, 64.27 per cent exercised their franchise in Thursday's by-election. Polling was peaceful except for sporadic incidents of clashes between the main rivals YSRC and BJP agents. The counting of votes will take place on Sunday, June 26 at Atmakur Engineering College in Nellorepalem.

The number of voters who exercised their right to vote was 82.44 percent lower than in the 2019 general election. YSSRCP sitting MLA, former minister Mekapati Gautam Reddy died in February, making by-elections inevitable.

The total number of votes cast was 1, 36,905, of which 69,397 were women voters and 208 were postal ballots, officials said. In 2019, 1, 72,288 voters exercised their right to vote. Political pundits say the TDP's decision not to field their candidate is the reason for the low turnout. The TDP has decided not to contest the elections in line with its policy of not challenging any dead MLA in the by-elections.

Polling began at 7 a.m., with an average of 11.56 percent of the total 279 polling stations polled in the first two hours. Small queues were seen at most polling stations in Atmakur town and even in rural areas till 10 am. By 11 a.m., polling had risen to 24.92 percent, and by 1 p.m., 44.14 percent of voters had exercised their right to vote. By 3 p.m., it was up 54.66 percent. With just one hour left until 5pm, 61.70 per cent voters had reached the stations.