TN CM’s Edappadi constituency records third highest voter turnout

Chennai: Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi Palaniswami’s constituency of Edappadi registered the third highest voter turnout at 85

Chennai: Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi Palaniswami’s constituency of Edappadi registered the third highest voter turnout at 85.60 per cent during the single-phased polling to 234 assembly constituencies on Tuesday, data revealed by the state election commission revealed on Wednesday. The seat belongs to Salem district that witnessed a turnout of 79.2 per cent.

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While Karur registered the highest voter turnout of 83.92 per cent,, Chennai witnessed the lowest turnout of 59.05 per cent.

Palaniswami enjoys strong support in his native village Siluvampalayam and was elected four times from Edappadi constituency. With sleek roads, a flyover and an arts and science college in the past 5 years, the chief minister ensured a huge infrastructure facelift for his village and constituency.

Karur, which topped the districts with the highest voter turnout, is witnessing a big political battle between former minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader V Senthil Balaji and transport minister and sitting MLA M R Vijayabhaskar.

With the lowest turnout, Chennai reaffirmed the idea that it is the urban constituencies that bring down the overall count every election. The Villivakkam assembly segment in the city reported a turnout of 55.52 per cent.

A similar situation was also witnessed in Kolathur in the state capital, from where DMK president M K Stalin is seeking re-election, as 60.5 per cent of the voters turned up.

The assembly constituencies of both the chief minister (85.60 percent) and the opposition leader (60.5 per cent) polled morevotes than the average registered in their respective districts of Salem (79.2 per cent) and Chennai (59.05 per cent).

On Wednesday, chief electoral officer Satyabrata Sahoo said the state had recorded an overall turnout of 72.78 per cent. The figure is slightly lower than what was recorded last year - 74.8 per cent. Experts, however, believe the state witnessed a good turnout as people visited polling stations despite the Covid-19 pandemic and surge in cases.

“72% is fairly good and is marginally lower than 2016 which we can attribute to Covid-19,” says political analyst Maalan Narayanan. “The numbers indicate that this will be a neck-to-neck election and it is a waveless election. Popular leaders have also polled numbers similar to previous elections.”

The election commission is yet to release the gender-wise data which would provide more insight, he said.

Bodinayakanur, from where deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam is contesting his former partyman and rival DMK leader Thanga Tamilselvan, saw a turnout of 73.5 per cent. Coimbatore south saw a turnout of 60.7 per cent voters in a three-cornered fight between actor and Makkal Needhi Maiam chief Kamal Haasan, Bharatiya Janata Party’s national women’s wing president Vanathi Srinivasan and Congress’ Mayura Jayakumar.

Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni, from where Stalin’s son Udhayanidhi made his electoral debut, registered a turnout of 58.41 per cent.

“It seems like there isn’t any anti-incumbency, we may form the government,” an AIADMK leader said, preferring anonymity.

“We are sure to win 170 seats. Even in 2014 Lok Sabha elections, we polled 72.4% so we will sweep the election again,” a DMK leader said on condition of anonymity.

In 2019, the DMK won 38 out of 39 Lok Sabha seats.