Reading on the wall

Voter turnouts in the Assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram have been put at 71%, 75% and 81% respectively—record figures that are in trend with generally increasing voter numbers in other recent state elections. The previous high in MP was 69.58%, while Mizoram had recorded 82.35% turnout last time. The Election Commission’s awareness drives with special focus on first time voters, cleaning up of electoral rolls, and a sense of security among voters combined to drive up voter participation.