New Delhi: Campaigning for the seventh and final phase of the Lok Sabha election ended on May 29, with people across 57 constituencies set to cast their vote across eight states and union territories on June 1.
The voting -- which will commence for all seats at 7 am, and come to an end at 6 pm as per the Election Commission guidelines -- will take place in constituencies across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Odisha, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Chandigarh.
A total of 904 candidates will remain in the fray when these eight states and UT go to polls on June 1. Of the total candidates, 328 are from Punjab, 144 from Uttar Pradesh, 134 from Bihar, 66 from Odisha, 52 from Jharkhand, 37 from Himachal Pradesh, and four from Chandigarh.
Among key candidates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who won from the Varanasi seat in 2014 and 2019, will be contesting against Congress leader Ajay Rai. Rai, previously a BJP leader, joined Congress in 2012. Himachal Pradesh's Mandi seat will see a fresh candidate -- actress Kangana Ranaut -- who will be fighting against Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh, the son of late former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.
In Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh), BJP has fielded actor Ravi Kishan. Samajwadi Party's (SP) candidate Kajal Nishad is contesting from this seat. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Ravi Kishan won the seat with 60 per cent and above votes while SP candidate Rambhual Nishad finished second and got 415,458 votes.
Till now, the voters' turnout in the first phase of the election process was recorded at 66.14 per cent across 102 constituencies. In the second phase, it was 66.71 per cent, covering 88 constituencies. In phase three, it was 65.68 per cent across 94 constituencies, with the fourth phase registering a total turnout of 69.16 per cent in 96 constituencies.
The fifth phase recorded 62.2 per cent of voter turnout in 49 constituencies, with the sixth phase registering 63,37 per cent of voter turnout in 57 constituencies. The result anticipated on June 4, will bring an end to the passionately contested election which started on April 19.
