WB polls: 18.39% turnout till 9 am; Purba Bardhaman leads polling

West Bengal records 18.39% voter turnout till 9 am as polling for 142 seats begins. Purba Bardhaman leads with 20.86%. The phase is a litmus test for the ruling TMC against the BJP in the party's traditional South Bengal strongholds.

Early Voter Turnout Details

West Bengal recorded a voter turnout of 18.39 per cent until 9 am on Wednesday, as polling for the remaining 142 seats across the state commenced earlier in the day.

Purba Bardhaman stands at the top, with a voting percentage of 20.86 %, followed by Hooghly, which has witnessed 20.16 % polling until 9 am on Wednesday. 18.50 percent polling has taken place in Nadia; meanwhile, North 24 Paraganas 17.81 % votes. Kolkata North and Kolkata South have experienced 17.28 % and 16.81 % polling respectively, whereas 17.76 percent voting has taken place in Howrah.

Key Contest and Leaders

The main fight in West Bengal in the 2026 elections is between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP. Earlier in the day, West Bengal LoP Suvendu Adhikari inspected the polling booths in Bhabanipur constituency. TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee cast his vote at the Mitra Institute polling booth in Bhabanipur.

Significance of the Second Phase

The second phase of the polling is widely seen as the 'litmus test' for the Trinamool Congress (TMC), as voting moves into the party's traditional fortresses in South Bengal and Kolkata.

The second phase covers 142 out of 294 seats in West Bengal. The total electorate is around 3.21 crore, with 1,64,35,627 men, 1,57,37,418 women and 792 transgender voters. 1,448 candidates are in the fray, including 220 women at 41,001 polling stations, with over 8,000 managed entirely by women.

While 142 seats are up for grabs, all eyes are on the 'Big Five' urban contests. Apart from the high-stakes seat of Bhabanipur, Tollyganj, the heart of the Bengali film industry, is a high-profile, star-studded battle.

In the 2021 elections, the TMC dominated this specific belt, winning 123 of these 142 seats. For the BJP, this phase is about making inroads into the urban "bhadralok" vote and the Matua community. For the TMC, it is about holding the line to ensure a fourth consecutive term for Mamata Banerjee. (ANI)

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