Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday congratulated voters for the record turnout of 64.66 percent in the first phase of assembly elections and appealed to the people to vote with the same enthusiasm in the second phase to be held on November 11.
The Election Commission had said in a statement on Thursday that the first phase of the assembly elections was held in a “peaceful and festive atmosphere” and the highest ever voter turnout of 64.66 percent in the history of Bihar was recorded. In the first phase, voting took place on 121 assembly seats in 18 districts.
“Heartfelt thanks to the people of Bihar for the record voting in the first phase. Bihar has made unprecedented progress in the last one year. Now the time has come to include Bihar in the category of most developed states. In a democracy, voting is not only our right but also our duty,” the Chief Minister wrote in a post on ‘X’. He appealed to the people to “vote with the same enthusiasm in the second phase of elections to be held on November 11, so that Bihar can progress further.”
Nitish wrote, “Everyone should be respected, everyone should develop.”
According to the Election Commission, Muzaffarpur and Samastipur districts witnessed the highest turnout in the first phase of voting. 70.96 percent in Muzaffarpur, 70.63 percent in Samastipur, 67.21 percent in Madhepura, 67.37 percent in Vaishali, 66.84 percent in Saharsa, 66.36 percent in Khagaria, 65.05 percent in Lakhisarai, 60.40 percent in Munger, 60.31 percent in Siwan, 60.31 percent in Nalanda. 58.91 percent voting was recorded and 57.93 percent voting was recorded in Patna.
According to the Commission, Bihar had the lowest voter turnout in the state in the 1951-52 assembly elections at 42.6 percent. This time the voting in the first phase was more than the 62.67 percent recorded in the year 2000.
