West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026 have once again attracted the attention of the country. While the news of violence, bombings and clashes remained in the headlines throughout the day, on the other hand the increased participation of voters wrote a different story. Till 5 pm, about 90 percent voting was recorded in the state, which in itself is a figure close to a record.

Nearly 90 percent voting in Bengal

According to the initial trends of the Election Commission, voting usually increases by 2 to 3 percent in the last one hour. In such a situation, the question is simple whether West Bengal will be able to touch the historical figure of 95 percent voting this time? Till 5 pm, 89.93 percent voting was recorded in the state. Long queues were seen in many areas since the beginning of the day. From rural areas to urban booths, women, elderly and youth reached the polling stations in large numbers. A tragic incident like the death of a female voter at the booth in Maltipur also came to light, but despite this, the enthusiasm of the people did not diminish.

Violence took place at many places during the elections

However, this election was not completely peaceful. There were continuous reports of bomb attacks, stone pelting and clashes between political workers in Murshidabad, Nawada and other sensitive areas. At many places, central forces and police had to intervene to control the situation. These incidents also raised questions regarding the fairness and security of the elections.

An important factor in this was the SIR process. Under this process, extensive correction and updating of the voter list was carried out, due to which a large number of new voters were added and old records were corrected. Election analysts believe that SIR has a direct impact on the voting percentage. More accurate and updated voter list motivated people to vote.

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Political parties are also looking at this huge turnout in their own way. While the ruling party is considering it as a sign of its support, the opposition is calling it a wave of change. This has been an old trend in Bengal politics – the more voting, the more political interpretations.

After crossing the 78.77 percent voting mark till 3 pm, it became clear that this time there is every possibility of a record being made. By evening this figure reached 89.24 percent, which made the electoral equations more interesting.

Voting taking place on 152 seats in West Bengal

A total of 1,478 candidates are in the fray for 152 seats in West Bengal in the first phase of assembly elections. 3.60 crore voters of the state will cast their votes for these candidates. BJP is contesting on all 152 seats, while TMC is contesting on 148 seats. The first phase of voting in Bengal is more important for BJP because these are the same areas where BJP’s fort is strong. The first phase of Bengal is not only big in terms of number of seats, but it also extends from North Bengal to Jangalmahal and Matua Garh.

Also read: West Bengal Assembly Election 2026: Stone pelting in Murshidabad, BJP candidate’s head broken in Birbhum-Dinajpur, day-long ruckus in Bengal amid voting.

On the voting held in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said that this is the highest graph of voting after independence. He said, ‘The highest polling percentage in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu since independence. The Election Commission salutes every voter of West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

Highest voting after independence

With 84.69% voting in Tamil Nadu and 91.78% voting in West Bengal (Phase-I), the highest ever voting participation was recorded since independence. Earlier, the highest voting participation was in Tamil Nadu at 78.29% (2011) and West Bengal at 84.72% (2011). In both West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, the share of women in voting is higher than that of men.

‘People voted without fear’

West Bengal CEO Manoj Kumar Aggarwal said, ‘The first phase of voting was completed today. There were 152 assembly seats and 45,000 booths… Voting is still going on at some places, while at some places paperwork is being done and EVMs are being sealed. They will be sent to the strong room. He said, ‘People voted without any fear. I have received reports that they were quite happy with the arrangements and incidents have also reduced. I want to thank all political parties and all concerned for fair and peaceful elections.

According to the data released from the Election Commission, till 6 pm, about 84.64 percent voting was recorded in Tamil Nadu and about 91.74 percent voting was recorded in West Bengal. These figures have clearly indicated that this time voters participated enthusiastically in the democratic process. During the first phase of voting in West Bengal, more than 90 percent voting was recorded in many districts, which is considered a big achievement.

District wise voting figures

According to district-wise data, the highest voting percentage was recorded in South Dinajpur at 94.77 percent, in Cooch Behar 94.40 percent, in Birbhum 93.61 percent and in Jalpaiguri 93.01 percent. Apart from this, 92.22 percent voting took place in Malda, 92.88 percent in Murshidabad, 92.04 percent in North Dinajpur and 91.78 percent in Jhargram. At the same time, in districts like Alipurduar, Bankura, West Medinipur and East Medinipur, the voting percentage remained between 89 to 91. Areas like Darjeeling (88.01 per cent) and Kalimpong (82.93 per cent) recorded relatively lower, but still strong, turnout.

Fate of 1,478 candidates will be decided

Voting in 16 districts of the state will decide the electoral fate of 1,478 candidates, including 167 women, in 152 constituencies of the 294-member state assembly. Voting started at seven in the morning. Despite the scorching heat and humidity, voters were seen standing in large queues outside the polling stations since morning and as time passed, the pace of voting increased. Sporadic incidents of violence in some districts, including attacks on candidates, created tension in the electoral environment of Bengal.

Also read: Mamata Banerjee’s first reaction on violence and record voting, know what she said on forming the government?