The polling for the Legislative Council from the South Graduates’ Constituency was smooth and peaceful in Hassan. Till the last reports came in, the voters’ turn out in the district was 74.22%.
The graduates stood in queues at a few polling stations, including those in Hassan city, to cast their votes. Among those who did vote on the day included legislators Preetham Gowda, C.N. Balakrishna, A.T. Ramaswamy, K.S. Lingesh and H.K. Kumaraswamy.
The supporters of candidates were seen engaged in last-minute campaigning near the polling stations. BJP MLA Preetham Gowda, JD(S), Lok Sabha member Prajwal Revanna and others campaigned for their respective candidates.
Of the total 24,252 voters, 17,999 cast their votes. This included 7,186 females and 10,813 male voters. The highest turnout of 82.19% was registered in Alur taluk. Arsikere recorded 80.05%. The turnout in other taluks was: Belur – 79.10%, Hassan – 69.31%, Sakaleshpur – 72.51%, Arkalgud – 79.88%, Holenarasipur – 79.19% and Channarayapatna – 72.06%. When the elections were held for the constituency in 2016, the district registered a voters’ turnout of 40.87%.
The increase in turnout has been attributed to the increase in the duration of voting. Polling has been extended up to 5 p.m., instead of 4 p.m. as it was in the previous elections. As many as 19 candidates were in the fray. The counting will be held in Mysuru on Wednesday.
