New Delhi, 9 April

Karnataka recorded moderate but steady voter turnout as polling concluded at 5 PM in the Assembly by-elections, even as Nagaland and Tripura surged ahead with significantly higher participation. 

Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 5 pm in both Assembly constituencies in Karnataka, where bypolls were held on Thursday. While the turnout in Bagalkot was 65.68 per cent, it was 63.04 per cent in Davanagere South.

An estimated 80.62 per cent voter turnout was recorded as polling for the byelection to the Koridang assembly seat in Mokokchung district of Nagaland when voting ended at 5pm on Thursday, the EC said.

Congress has fielded Umesh Meti from Bagalkot and Samarth Mallikarjun from Davanagere South. Umesh Meti is the son of late Congress leader Meti Hullappa Yamanappa (HY Meti), who represented the Bagalkot seat, while Samarth Mallikarjun is the son of Karnataka Minister SS Mallikarjun. The BJP has fielded Veerabhadrayya Charantimath and Srinivas T Dasakariyappa from Bagalkot and Davanagere South assembly constituencies, respectively. The Bagalkot seat fell vacant after the death of HY Meti and Davanagere South, following the death of Shamanur Shivashankarappa.

Nagaland continued to dominate voter turnout charts. The Koridang constituency recorded a significant 75.06% turnout by 3pm, maintaining the highest participation among all seats. Earlier in the day, by 11am, the constituency had already recorded a remarkable 59.52% turnout. Congress’s candidate T Chalukumba AO is contesting against Daochier I Imchen, son of veteran BJP leader Imkong L Imchen. T Chalukumba AO had contested the 2023 Nagaland Assembly elections on a Janata Dal (United) ticket. BJP State Council Member Imchainba Jamir had withdrawn his candidature in favour of Imchen. The Koridang (ST) seat became vacant after the death of Imkong L Imchen.

Tripura’s Dharmanagar constituency also witnessed strong voter enthusiasm, reaching 70.09% turnout by 3pm. Earlier, the seat had crossed the halfway mark with 52.76% turnout by 11am. The contest features BJP’s Jahar Chakraborti, Congress’s Chayan Bhattacharjee, and CPI(M)’s Amitabha Datta. The seat fell vacant after the demise of Tripura Speaker and four-time MLA Biswa Bandhu Sen.

Voting for the bypolls in Davanagere South and Bagalkot in Karnataka, Koridang in Nagaland, and Dharmanagar in Tripura began at 7am.

The elections were necessitated following the deaths of sitting legislators in these constituencies.

Meanwhile, the bypoll in Goa’s Ponda constituency, which was scheduled for today, was cancelled by the Bombay High Court. The Election Commission has announced that results for the ongoing by-elections across eight Assembly constituencies in six states will be declared on 4 May 2026. Polling for other seats, including Umreth in Gujarat and Rahuri and Baramati in Maharashtra, is scheduled for 23 April, with counting also set for 4 May.

The turnout trends indicate strong voter participation overall, with northeastern states leading the charts and Karnataka showing steady engagement as polling progressed.