Guwahati: People wait in queues to cast their votes during the Assam Assembly elections, at a polling station, in Guwahati, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (PTI Photo)
Thiruvananthapuram: After days of high-voltage campaigning, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry stepped into decision day on Thursday, April 9, with crores of voters set to determine who will govern the states.
The voter turnout in Assam Assembly elections was recorded at 38.92 per cent as of 11 am, according to data shared by the Election Commission of India (ECI). In Kerala, the turnout was recorded at 33.28 per cent while in Puducherry, it was 37.06 per cent.
In Kerala, around 2.71 crore voters will decide the fate of the 883 candidates who are contesting from the 140 Assembly constituencies. The electorate comprises 1.32 crore men, 1.39 crore women and 273 transgender persons, along with over 2.42 lakh overseas voters, according to Election Commission (EC) figures.
Polling for all 126 Assam assembly constituencies began to decide the electoral fate of 722 candidates. An electorate of 2.50 crore, including 1.25 crore women and 318 from the third gender, can exercise their franchise in 31,490 polling stations across the state.
Voting commenced amid tight security across the union territory of Puducherry with 9.50 lakh voters set to decide the electoral fortunes of the ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc. The Union Territory has a total of 9.50 lakh voters spread over Puducherry (23 Assembly segments) Karaikal (five), Mahe and Yanam (having one constituency each).
According to officials, the union territory has 1,099 polling stations and of them 209 have been identified as vulnerable and a total of 294 candidates are in the fray.
Live updates:
1:40 pm: In first 4 hours, Assam records 38.92 pc voter turnout, Kerala 33.28 pc, Puducherry 37.06 pc
11:08 am: BJP national president Nitin Nabin urged the people of Assam, Kerala and Puducherry to come out in large numbers and vote for progress and development.
10:30 am: Kerala Minister P Rajeev arrived at the Ambedkar Training Centre in Vidya Nagar Colony to cast his vote
10:10 am: A voter turnout of 17.87 per cent was recorded in the first two hours of the assembly elections in Assam.
10:00 am:
Around 16 per cent of Kerala’s 2.71 crore electorate have cast their votes within the first two hours of polling.9:30 am: Rajeev Chandrasekhar, BJP’s Kerala State President, cast his vote in Thiruvananthapuram.
8:00 am: The voting began after completion of mock polling.
This post was last modified on April 9, 2026 12:42 pm