After record voting in the first phase, the fate of 1448 candidates including Mamata is at stake, decision will be taken on 142 seats.

The voting to be held on Wednesday (29 April 2026) under the second phase of West Bengal Assembly elections will decide whether the Trinamool Congress is able to retain its stronghold of South Bengal or the BJP succeeds in making a dent in it and reaching power. Voting will be held for 142 seats of the state assembly on Wednesday under the second phase of Bengal elections. Voting will be held on 142 assembly seats in six districts including Kolkata on April 29. In this phase, more than 3.21 crore voters will decide the fate of 1,448 candidates.

Voting on 142 seats during the second phase

According to the Election Commission, there are a total of 3,21,73,837 registered voters on these 142 seats. These include 1,64,35,627 male, 1,57,37,418 female and 792 third gender voters. Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) have been made available to all voters. Among the voters, there are 3,243 voters aged 100 years and above, while the number of voters above 85 years of age is 1,96,801. Apart from this, 146 NRI voters and 39,961 service voters will also vote in this phase.

Fate of 1,448 candidates decided

A total of 1,448 candidates are in the fray in the second phase, which includes 1,228 male and 220 female candidates. There is no third gender candidate on any seat. Out of 142 seats, 107 are of general category, while 34 seats are reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) and one seat for Scheduled Tribe (ST). Maximum 15 candidates are in the fray for Bhangar seat in South 24 Parganas district, while there are minimum five candidates for one seat in Hooghly district.

2,407 companies of central forces deployed

Apart from Kolkata, the districts where voting will take place include Nadia, East Bardhaman, Hooghly, South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas and Howrah. A total of 41,001 polling stations have been created, of which 39,301 are main and 1,700 are auxiliary polling stations. Webcasting arrangements have been made at all polling stations. Unprecedented security arrangements have been made to ensure peaceful voting. 2,407 companies of central forces have been deployed. Apart from these, West Bengal Police and Kolkata Police personnel will also be deployed for security. Counting of votes will take place on May 4.

Despite BJP’s aggressive campaign five years ago, Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress performed brilliantly in South Bengal and retained its hold on power in the state. This result made it clear that if you want power in West Bengal, then it is most important to win South Bengal.

Mamta VS Shubhendu in the second phase

Voting is also to be held in the same phase on Bhawanipur Assembly seat, which is the stronghold of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and BJP has fielded Leader of Opposition Subhendu Adhikari here. For BJP, the second phase is not just the last round of voting, but it is the real test of whether anti-incumbency, allegations of corruption and politics of citizenship can make a dent in the strongest wall of the ruling party.

West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar said, ‘We have made all preparations for violence-free elections. Everything is ready. All security forces have been deployed. CAPF is deployed at the booths… CCTVs have been installed and they have been tested… We appeal to everyone to cooperate.

Also read: West Bengal Elections 2026: 15 years of rule, now the litmus test… Will ‘Brand Mamata’ be able to show charisma again in Bengal?