• Model Code of Conduct comes into force
• Counting of votes and results on May 13

New Delhi:  Karnataka will vote on May 10 to elect a new Government and members to its 224-seat Legislative Assembly, announced Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar at a press conference held at the Plenary Hall of Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi this noon. The counting of votes will take place on May 13 and the results will be declared on the same day.

The CEC was accompanied by two other Election Commissioners, Anup Pandey and Arun Goel during the announcement of schedule of the polls. With the announcement of the election dates, the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) has come into force with immediate effect.

The announcement comes amid a high-stakes political battle between the ruling BJP and the Opposition Congress and Janata Dal-Secular. The BJP is seeking to retain power, fending off allegations of corruption and communal polarisation. The election will also test the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party’s policies.

5.21 crore voters

The Election Commission will set up polling stations for over 5.21 crore voters across the State’s 224 Constituencies, including 36 reserved for the candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC) and 15 reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST).

In 2018, there were 58,008 polling booths across the State and in 2023, the number has gone up to 58,282. There are 9,58,806 first-time voters in the State. The CEC said that 41,432 voters, who would turn 18 between Jan. 2 and April 1, would also be eligible to cast votes in the coming elections.

Karnataka Assembly Poll Schedule for all 224 Constituencies
Issue of Gazette Notification	13.4.2023 (Thursday)
Last date for filing nominations	20.4.2023 (Thursday)
Scrutiny of nomination papers	21.4.2023 (Friday)
Last date for withdrawal of nominations	24.4.2023 (Monday)
Date of voting	10.5.2023 (Wednesday)
Counting of votes	13.5.2023 (Saturday)

16,976 centenarian voters

The registered voters in Karnataka also include 16,976 centenarian voters. The EC will make special outreach to the senior citizens, including the centenarians, to encourage them to cast votes. The current term of the 224-member Karnataka Legislative Assembly ends on May 24, 2023 (May 25, 2018 to May 24, 2023).

There are 5,23,63,948 general electors in Karnataka and 47,609 service voters. The total number of electors as per electoral rolls is 5,24,11,557. There are 5,60,908 physically challenged voters and 12,15,142 voters who are above 80 years of age.

“Also under Advance Application Facility, over 1.25 lakh applications were received from  17 years plus youth, out of which around 41,000 applications received from youth turning 18 years by April 1, 2023,” he said. Also, there are 42,756 sexual minorities in the State, the CEC added.

58,282 polling stations

He said that all arrangements will be made at the polling stations for the convenience of senior citizens and physically challenged voters. For the upcoming elections, 58,282 polling stations will be set up, CEC Rajiv Kumar said. Out of the 58,282 polling stations, there are 24,063 and 34,219 polling stations in urban and rural areas, respectively, he said.

For enhanced voter participation, there will be 1,320 polling stations managed by women and 224 polling stations managed by youths, while 224 polling stations will be managed by persons with disabilities, CEC Rajiv Kumar said. The average voter per polling station is  883, he added.

Hackathon – Electhon

To address issues such as urban and youth apathy, ECI has launched a Hackathon named Electhon-2023. Over 746 teams have been registered so far to provide solutions to enhance the participation of urban and youth voters, he said. As much as 50 percent of polling stations will have a webcasting facility.

As many as 40 ethnic polling stations will be set up for Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)  and special emphasis on the participation of the third gender in the election process, he said. Awareness campaign will also be held by the Commercial Tax Department to nudge voters towards ethical voting, Kumar said.

More than Rs. 80 crore seizures so far: CEC

On election malpractices, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said the Election Commission is strengthening teams to curb misuse of money power. “As many as 2,400 Static Surveillance teams will keep strict vigil,” he said.

The Commission will also monitor as many as 171 inter-State check-posts in 19 districts sharing borders with other States, Kumar said and added that the multiple agencies are working in synergy and coordination. “Strict and timely action will be taken against use of money power,” Kumar said. Expenditure-sensitive Constituencies will also be mapped, he added.

On the Commission’s directions during the review meetings with enforcement agencies, strict vigil and monitoring ensured more than Rs. 80 crore seizures so far, even before the enforcement of Model Code of Conduct, Kumar said.

Kumar said advance planning, use of technology, and strict monitoring ensured peaceful and violence-free elections in recently held elections in three States in North-East, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.