India’s multiphase voting concluded on Saturday after seven rounds of elections over 44 days. The giant electoral exercise – the largest in democratic history – saw 15 million polling staff travelling the length and breadth of the vast country to conduct the vote at about 1 million polling stations, many of which were located in remote villages, hills, deserts and conflict zones.
Voters have braved soaring temperatures to cast their ballots, with the seven phases – April 19, April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1 – recording turnouts of 66.1, 66.7, 61.0, 67.3, 60.5, 63.4 and 62 percent, respectively. An estimated 969 million people were registered to vote. Ballots were cast using electronic voting machines (EVMs).
