Himachal Elections: Vote Counting Begins; BJP Seeks to Maintain Power

GG News Bureau

Shimla, 8th Dec. The counting of votes for the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections began on Thursday, with the ruling BJP hoping to retain power.

The results of the high-stakes elections will also reveal whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s all-out personalised campaign to defy the ‘alternative government’ trend was successful or not.

The opposition Congress, on the other hand, is desperate for a victory in Himachal after a string of electoral defeats in recent years.

In nearly four decades, Himachal Pradesh has not returned an incumbent government to power.

In the closely contested elections, most exit polls predicted a victory for the ruling BJP in the hill state.

The Congress has expressed confidence in the party’s ability to win the assembly elections, claiming that voters will decide on fundamental issues such as price increases, joblessness, the old pension scheme, and other life challenges.

The opposition party, which has power only in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, hopes that its revival will begin in Himachal Pradesh.

The results will also reveal whether the newcomer Aam Aadmi Party, which ran a low-key campaign for the November 12 elections, was able to make any inroads into the hill state in its bid to broaden its base.

Vote counting began at 8 a.m. at 68 counting halls spread across 59 locations across the state, with postal ballots being counted first.

The counting of votes for electronic voting machines (EVMs) began at 8.30 a.m., 30 minutes after the counting of postal ballot papers.

The counting of EVMs will continue regardless of the stage of postal ballot counting, according to the Election Commission.

The commission has made elaborate vote counting arrangements, with more than 10,000 security personnel, returning officers, and other support staff overseeing the counting process for Himachal Pradesh’s 68 assembly constituencies.

According to Maneesh Garg, Chief Electoral Officer of Himachal Pradesh, a maximum of 14 counting tables and a minimum of eight counting tables will be placed in the counting halls, with a separate table to accommodate nearly 500 postal ballots.

There will also be separate tables for scanning and counting electronically transmitted postal ballots.

In the November 12 assembly elections, approximately 76.44 percent of voters cast votes.

By December 6, the returning officers had received 52,859 (approximately 87%) postal ballots from all over the state, a 17% increase from the previous year. In 2017, a total of 45,126 postal ballots were received.

The trends in vote counting will be available on the Voter Helpline App and at results.eci.gov.in.