Decline in number of voters in 27% constituencies: Praveen Chakravarthyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxKti3WfzMY The News Minute This election season, the Election Commission has come under intense scrutiny. Criticized for failing to curb hate speech and for not releasing actual voter turnout numbers, the situation has become unprecedented. Pooja Prasanna interviews the Chairman, Congress Data Analytics Department Praveen Chakravarty who says that there has been a decline in the number of voters in 27% constituencies, most of them either tightly contested or held by opposition MPs. A majority of the seats are from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
The curious case of declining voters in the 2024 elections https://www.thehindu.com/data/the-curious-case-of-declining-voters-in-the-2024-elections/article68206832.ece May 23, 2024
In nearly one-third of all constituencies in the 2024 election, the total absolute number of voters declined vis-à-vis the 2019 election
the total number of people who come out to vote in an election is expected to only increase over a five-year election cycle. This is because India’s population continues to grow and the number of people who reach the voting age of 18 increases every year unless there has been a rare demographic disaster resulting in higher numbers of deaths or people fleeing. The total number of people who voted in a constituency in 2024 should then be higher than the number who voted in that constituency in 2019. Just as percentage increase in GDP or salary may vary yearly, voter turnout percentages can go up or down between elections. But the actual number of voters generally only rises between two five-year election cycles in India.
'Decline in Voter Turnout in Absolute Numbers More Mysterious Than Low Polling Percentages' https://thewire.in/politics/decline-in-voter-turnout-in-absolute-numbers-more-mysterious-than-low-polling-percentages The Wire Staff
Calling it a 'rarity', Praveen Chakravarthy of the Congress says that 115 of the 427 constituencies voted so far showed a drop in voter turnout in terms of absolute numbers... the issue that should be of significant concern is not that of declining voter turnout in terms of percentages but the decrease being seen in terms of absolute numbers. Analysing voter turnout numbers until phase 5 whereby 427 out of 543 constituencies have already voted, Chakravarthy says nearly one-third of constituencies witnessed lower voter turnout in terms of absolute numbers in comparison to the 2019 general election.
Chakravarthy’s analysis delves even deeper to look at where these constituencies are from, state-wise, and which party won in each of the constituencies in 2019. He underlines why voter turnout percentage is an “insufficient measure” to understand this “mysterious trend”.
Without drawing any conclusion, he says, “It is best to avoid conjectures and let the Election Commission explain this mysterious trend.”