Polling in the first phase of the 2026 Assembly elections ended at 6 pm on April 23, 2026, with the Election Commission of India reporting a record turnout: West Bengal logged 91.91% voter turnout while Tamil Nadu recorded 84.80%. The commission hailed the day as a “festival of democracy,” noting unusually high participation under heavy security across both states.
Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar said the ECI “salutes each voter” and, according to ANI, called it the “highest ever percentage of polling in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu since Independence.” Polling was carried out amid tight security arrangements intended to ensure a peaceful exercise.
Several West Bengal districts reported turnout above 90%. Dakshin Dinajpur led the state at 94.85%, followed by Cooch Behar (94.54%), Birbhum (93.70%), Jalpaiguri (93.23%) and Murshidabad (92.93%), reflecting broad-based voter engagement across the state. Tamil Nadu also saw strong district-level participation, with Karur at 92.48%, Salem 90.42%, Dharmapuri 90.02%, Erode 89.97% and Namakkal 89.63%.
The turnout marks a clear rise from the 2021 Assembly elections, when West Bengal recorded 85.2% and Tamil Nadu 76.6%, underscoring increased voter mobilisation this cycle. Polling in this phase covered all 234 Assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu and 152 in West Bengal; voting in the remaining 142 West Bengal seats is scheduled for May 29, 2026, and counting of votes is set for May 4, 2026.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing rallies in Krishnanagar (Nadia district) and Kakdwip (South 24 Parganas), congratulated voters and said the trends signalled an “overwhelming mandate for change.” He praised the Election Commission for keeping “violence during the Assembly polls in the state at a minimum” and linked high turnout to decisive electoral outcomes, PTI reported. Modi also referenced the deletion of over 90 lakh names from electoral rolls under the SIR exercise in the run-up to polling.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee countered those claims at a Kolkata rally, saying the phase-one turnout indicates the Trinamool Congress is “already in a position to win” and asserting she seeks the end of the BJP government in Delhi rather than any post. TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh told reporters that the surge in turnout has “decisively gone in favour of the ruling party,” accusing the BJP of misreading the results and calling the turnout a “resounding endorsement” of Mamata Banerjee’s governance, PTI quoted.
The record turnouts in both states underline intense voter interest and mean that the results, to be declared on May 4, 2026, will be closely watched for what they signal about regional political shifts. With inputs from agencies.
Original Source: https://www.firstpost.com/india/west-bengal-records-historic-91-91-turnout-in-phase-i-polls-tamil-nadu-logs-84-80-14003743.html
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Publish Date: 2026-04-23 21:05:00
