The preparations for the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly elections, including the Election Commission and the candidate parties, are in full swing. On 3 December, it will become clear whose hopes will be dashed before the start of the new year. The Election Commission, along with the parties, will encourage people to vote by going door-to-door. However, the dilemma comes as the voters in the state do not fully participate in the elections. According to the figures for the 2013 and 2018 election years, 40,829,312 and 47,789,966 voters are included in the list. However, in the entire state, only about one crore people did not vote in the last two elections.
The reason behind people not voting: Due to Rajasthan’s large geographical area, several areas are far from the main issues of the state. Some voters have left the region to migrate from their registered constituencies. In addition, there are several other reasons why a quarter of the population is not voting. On the main front, high costs and arrangements for transportation, a lack of alternatives if they migrate, being busy with work and many more.
Low voter turnout in the capital : Even in Jaipur, things are not significantly better. In 2013, there were 39,11,600 voters, and in 2018, there were 4,548,788 voters. Of these, 28,76,745, or 73.5%, voted in 2013, and only 33,99,424, or 74.7%, voted in 2018. According to the figures from the 2018 elections, there are 7 assembly seats in Jaipur and very few voters turned in their votes. In Jaipur, Jhotwara, Hawa Mahal, Vidhyadhar Nagar, Civil Lines, Malviya Nagar, Sanganer, and Bagru were the assembly seats with the lowest voter turnout.
No options for many people on election duty
There are many employees and officials involved in elections who cannot vote.
Although the Election Commission assigns new people the responsibility of elections every year, some names are there, and they have been on election duty for years. Even newcomers, drivers, officers, activists, and security personnel who have been working in elections for a long time cannot vote.
A look at the election numbers for 2023
Rajasthan has 5.27 crore voters, including 2.73 crore males, 2.51 crore females, and 604 transgender individuals. Among them, 18,462 voters are over 100 years old, 1.18 million are over 80 years old, and 2.19 million will be voting for the first time.
The Election Commission will ensure that elections are conducted independently and impartially to increase voter turnout to over 75% at every polling centre. It is hoped that the voter turnout will increase this time.
Innovations by the Election Commission
In Rajasthan, the registration of 29,643 newlyweds has been done through special camps. Furthermore, women will manage 1,600 polling centres, disabled individuals will manage 200 centres, and young recruits will manage 1,600 centres. Voting at 50% of the polling centres will be webcast out of 51,756 centres. For the first time, eligible voters will be provided with the convenience of home voting. This could make a significant difference in the voting figures.
