Assam To Hold 1st-Ever Single-Phase Poll On April 9: All You Need To Know

Assam will witness a single-phase Assembly election for the first time, with polling scheduled for April 9. Chief Election Officer (CEO) Anurag Goel made the announcement on Monday during a press conference in Guwahati, following the official schedule release by the Election Commission of India in New Delhi.

The election process formally began on Monday following the issuance of the notification. Returning officers across all 126 Assembly constituencies have started inviting nominations from prospective candidates.

Key Dates And Nomination Procedures

Candidates can submit their nomination papers between March 16 and March 23. These must be filed between 11:00 AM and 3:00 PM at the offices of the District Commissioners. Goel clarified that nominations will only be accepted at District Commissioner offices, which serve as the District Election Offices, and not at sub-divisional levels.

The scrutiny of nomination papers is scheduled for March 24, while the deadline for the withdrawal of candidature is March 26. Once this stage is complete, ballot papers for the Electronic Voting Machines will be finalised and sent for secure printing. For service voters, including members of the armed forces, postal ballots will be transmitted electronically by March 27.

Polling Schedule And Campaign Rules

Campaigning will continue until 5:00 PM on April 7, after which a mandatory 48-hour silence period will begin. Polling will take place on April 9 from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Should any repolling be necessary, it will be conducted between April 11 and April 13.

Electoral Roll And Voter Demographics

The state's electorate has seen a net increase of approximately 64,000 voters since the final rolls were published in February. As of March 15, the total number of registered voters stands at 2,50,21,413.

The 20 to 29 age group remains the largest voting bloc with over 66 lakh electors. There has also been a significant rise in young voters aged 18 to 19, who now number 6,28,093. Additionally, the state has over one lakh voters aged 85 and above, including 2,482 centenarians.

Assam currently has 31,486 polling stations, a number expected to reach 31,490 with the addition of auxiliary stations. Dalgaon holds the highest number of electors with 3,17,110 voters, while Amri has the lowest at 1,00,494. In terms of infrastructure, Mankachar has the most polling stations at 402, while Dotma has the fewest at 146.