Amaravati, November 1: Polling for elections to 92 urban local bodies (ULBs) in Andhra Pradesh ended at 5 p.m. on Sunday and was peaceful barring minor incidents, State Election Commissioner Anil Chandra Punetha said, according to IANS. Voting had begun at 7 a.m. in 13 municipal corporations and 79 municipalities and nagar panchayats, and a preliminary turnout of 48.03% was recorded up to 3 p.m.

Source: IANS via Hi India

92Urban local bodies that voted on Sunday
99.35 lakhEligible voters at 11,378 polling centres
10,262Candidates for mayor, chairperson and ward posts
48.03%Preliminary turnout recorded up to 3 p.m.

Punetha said polling staff would carry ballot boxes and election material to reception centres, where the votes cast at each polling station will be verified; the final turnout percentage will be announced on Monday once complete details are received. The fate of the 10,262 candidates will be known on November 3, when counting is taken up. Elections for chairpersons of 17 municipalities and nagar panchayats were unanimous, and in eight bodies — Allagadda, Dachepalli, Darsi, Gurajala, Kamalapuram, Piduguralla, Proddatur and Rayachoti — both chairpersons and ward members were elected unopposed, going to the ruling NDA, Nation Press reported.

Source: Nation Press

Of the 922 corporator wards, polling was held for 804, the remaining 118 having been decided unanimously; 153 candidates contested the mayor posts in the 13 municipal corporations and 367 the chairperson posts in 70 municipalities. Inspector General Raja Kumari said about 40 incidents were reported during polling on Sunday and 275 FIRs have been registered, IANS reported — figures that sit alongside the day's sharper flashpoint in Pulivendula, where YSRCP leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy staged a sit-in at the election office demanding a repoll, as Awaaz Punjab reported earlier on Sunday.

Source: IANS via Hi India

What happens next

The final voter turnout will be announced on Monday, November 2, after reception-centre data is verified, and counting of votes for all contested seats is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, the State Election Commission said, as also reported by Daily Kiran. The elections were originally scheduled for October 28 but were deferred following a Supreme Court directive after violent incidents prevented several candidates from filing nominations.

Source: Daily Kiran