5 States, 690 Seats: All You Need to Know About Elections 2017

Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa will go to polls from February on.

• Seven-phase polling in Uttar Pradesh to be held from 11 February to 8 March
  
• Two-phase polling in Manipur on 4 and 8 March
  
• Single-phase polling in Goa and Punjab on 4 February
  
• Single-phase polling in Uttarakhand on 15 February
  
• Results for all five states to be announced on 11 March
  

Details of Assembly Elections 2017

A total of 690 legislative assemblies will go to polls, of which 133 seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 23 for Scheduled Tribes. An estimated 160 million people are expected to cast their votes in these assembly elections.

The Commission said that 1,85,000 voting booths are being set up and that voter assistance booths would be set up outside every polling station.

There will be separate polling stations for women to prevent their votes from being influenced.

For the first time, the Commission has also announced electronic transmission of votes from the polling booths to the main centre.

AAP Objects to Simultaneous Polls

Minutes after the assembly election poll dates were announced, the Aam Aadmi Party objected to simultaneous elections in all five states.

Speaking to The Quint, AAP's Ashutosh said:

AAP is fully geared up for elections. We have been preparing for the elections for the last one year. We have finalised list of candidates. We respect the Election Commission. But the issue is that 3 days before the Punjab and Goa elections, the budget will be presented. The EC should take cognisance of it.

In response, the Chief of Election Commission, Nasim Zaidi said that “all stakeholders were consulted before the schedule was finalised”.

The logistics and operational issues are there. The Election Commission has taken that into considerations. Due diligence has been followed in deciding same day polling for Goa and Punjab. We expect cooperation from all the political parties.

Manipur: 60 Seats up for Grabs

Manipur will vote in two phases on 4 and 8 March. Here are the details of the election schedule:

Polls in the Time of ‘Economic Blockade’

While the Election Commission was preparing to announce the poll dates, the Ministry of Home Affairs made desperate attempts to postpone polls in trouble-torn Manipur.

The 2017 assembly polls in Manipur are bound to be affected by the continuing economic blockade and the resultant violence.

The Congress party in Manipur has regained lost ground against the BJP, that was fast gaining popularity until the outbreak.

On Monday, Irom Sharmila, Manipur’s ‘Iron Lady’ formally announced that she would contest in the polls.

Take a look at the numbers from the 2012 Assembly elections:

Uttarakhand: 70 Seats at Stake

The polls for Uttarakhand have been scheduled for 15 February. Here are the details of the election schedule:

Polls After Floor Tests and Rebellions

The year 2016 saw the worst political crisis in Uttarakhand, marked by a major revolt against Chief Minister Harish Rawat by his own party MLAs, resulting in nearly two months of President’s rule.

There are reports that the Congress is roping in poll strategist Prashant Kishor to keep the BJP at bay. The BJP, which has ruled in the state for only two years since its inception in 2000, is currently running without any chief ministerial candidate.

Uttarakhand has always decided its electoral fate with a thin margin, leaving the situation precarious till the end. Whether this year will be any different remains to be seen.

Take a look at the numbers from the 2012 Assembly elections: