Gandhinagar: Voting is underway across Gujarat for the local body elections, with the majority of the state’s electorate expected to participate in the day-long exercise.

Polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm across 15 municipal corporations, including nine, Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar, where civic polls are being held for the first time. Alongside, elections are also being conducted for 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats. Additionally, 11 municipalities are also witnessing by-elections.

A total of 10,005 seats are at stake, including 9,992 regular seats and 13 bypoll seats. Out of these, 736 seats have already been decided through unopposed wins, leaving 9,263 seats in the fray for polling. For these, 25,537 candidates are in the fray.

According to the State Election Commission (SEC), over 4.08 crore (40.8 million) voters are eligible to participate in shaping the future of their local administrations. This includes 2.10 crore male voters and 1.98 crore female voters.

On a logistical scale, a total of 48,450 polling booths have been established across the state, providing accessible locations for millions of citizens to cast their ballots. To oversee the polling, the SEC has appointed 956 Election Officers and 1,246 Assistant Election Officers. Furthermore, a total polling staff of 2,64,715 personnel has been deployed to facilitate operations on the ground.

The ruling BJP, which swept the 2021 local body elections, is aiming to maintain its dominance, banking on its development-focused governance narrative.

The Congress, on the other hand, has sought to capitalise on issues such as agrarian distress, alleged irregularities in schemes like MNREGA, and unemployment, positioning the polls as an opportunity for change.

Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has fielded around 5,000 candidates, is attempting to expand its footprint, particularly after its earlier gains in urban local bodies.

Counting of votes will take place on April 28, and the results will be a key indicator of public mood ahead of the next general election in 2027. DeshGujarat