Low turnout as drizzling rain mars first phase of Upazila polls

Election officials hope for voter turnout to increase as the day rolls along and the weather clears

The first phase of the Sixth Upazila Parishad Elections has begun amid drizzling rain in many parts of the country.

Voting began at 8am on Wednesday in 139 Upazilas across the country and will continue till 4pm.

According to bdnews24.com’s district correspondents, voter turnout at the centres was very low at the start of the day. Candidates are worried that rain may hamper voting in many areas.

Meteorologist Md Omar Farooq said on Tuesday that there is no chance of heavy rainfall on election day on Wednesday, but it may rain at night and lead to a drop in temperatures.

But, in various districts including Natore, Madaripur, and Gazipur, the sky has been dark since the morning with light rain in many areas. Meanwhile, election officials are waiting for the voters.

The first two hours of voting have not seen any reports of disturbances. Election officials are expecting greater voter turnout as the weather clears later in the day.

GAZIPUR

Three Upazilas in Gazipur go to the polls on Wednesday.

It has been drizzling in the district since morning and the voter turnout has been very low in the prevailing weather. However, Returning Officer AHM Kamrul Hasan said that polling began peacefully.

He said that ballots are being cast at 258 centres in three Upazilas in Gazipur. A total of 693,916 voters are eligible to vote in the polls.

Five candidates are vying for the post of chairman in Gazipur Sadar, three for the post of chairman in Kaliganj Upazila and two for the post of chairman in Kapasia Upazila.

Mehedi Hasan, a Kaliganj Upazila chairman candidate, said that he is worried about the rain but is still trying to bring the voters to the centres.

NARAYANGANJ

Few voters have turned out to polling centres in Narayanganj’s Bandar Upazila amid the drizzling rain.

Presiding officers say turnout is low early on due to inclement weather but hope that the turnout will increase as the day goes along.

No votes were cast in the first hour at the four women’s polling booths of the Haji Abdul Malek High School Centre in Kushiara village in Bandar Union.

Presiding Officer Nizam Uddin Chowdhury said, "Regular women voters often have work in the morning so they finish their chores and come to vote in the afternoon. Moreover, the adverse weather has led to fewer coming.”

Out of the six polling booths for men at the centre, booth No. 3 saw the most votes in the first hour with 13. Presiding Officer Shahinur Zaman said, “The number of voters is low due to rain. It will increase over time.”

Three of the eight polling booths at the nearby Kushiara Government Primary School centre did not see any votes cast in the first 30 minutes. Only one of the polling booths saw four votes cast as of 8:30am.

Presiding Officer Badrul Alam said, "Today, it started to rain in the early morning, but it stopped just before polls opened. Voters have not started coming to the centre even though polls opened at the appointed time.”

NATORE

In Natore district, voting is taking place on paper ballots in 302 centres in the Sadar, Singra and Naldanga Upazilas. Although polls opened at 8am, few voters were seen at Natore Sadar centres amid the dark clouds in the sky.

District Returning Officer Abdul Latif Sheikh said he expects the number of voters to increase as the day progresses.

The only candidate for the post of chairman in Singra Upazila was elected unopposed, while 13 candidates are vying for the post of chairman in Natore Sadar and Naldanga. Another 15 candidates are contesting for the post of vice chairman and 10 people are contesting for the post of women vice chairman in the three Upazilas.

MADARIPUR

Polling has started in 186 centres in Madaripur Sadar and Rajoir Upazila amid drizzling rain.

District Election Officer Ahmed Ali said, "Even though the turnout is a little low due to the inclement weather, we hope that the turnout will increase when the weather clears."

Asibur Rahman Khan, son of local MP Shajahan Khan, and Pavelur Rahman Shafiq Khan, organising secretary of district Awami League, are competing for the post of chairman in Madaripur Sadar Upazila. Three people are vying for the post of vice chairman and five women are running for the post of vice chairman.

Rajoir Upazila has three candidates for the post of chairman, four candidates for the post of vice chairman and four candidates for the post of female vice chairman.

KUSHTIA

In Kushtia, voting is underway in the Sadar and Khoksa Upazilas. However, few voters came to the polls in the first hour of voting. Candidates’ supporters were not crowding around polling centres in large numbers either.

District Returning Officer Abu Nacher said that a total of 536,841 voters can cast their ballots at the 195 polling centres during the first phase of the elections.

GAIBANDHA

Drizzling rain cast a pall over voting in Gaibandha's Saghata and Phulchari Upazilas, leading to low voter turnout.

However, candidates and polling officials are expecting more voters to turn up as the day progresses.

Returning Officer Abdul Mottalib said that there are 103 polling stations in Saghata Upazila and 60 in Phulchari Upazila. All centres are using paper ballots.

KISHOREGANJ

Polling has started peacefully in the Sadar, Hossainpur and Pakundia Upazilas of Kishoreganj. However, few voters could be seen at polling stations in the morning.

More are likely to come as the day progresses, said Presiding Officer Md Hossain Ali at the District City Girls High School and Presiding Officer Mohidul Islam at the Azimuddin High School.

A total of 12 candidates are competing for the post of chairman in the three Kishoreganj Upazilas. Another 15 people are battling it out for the post of vice chairman while seven are competing for the post of women vice chairman.

The Sadar Upazila has 355,818 eligible voters, the Hossainpur Upazila has 166,167 and Pakundia has 224,669.

District Returning Officer Morshed Alam said that no 'unpleasant' incidents were reported anywhere in the district around the start of voting.

JASHORE

Jashore’s Manirampur and Keshabpur Upazilas are voting by electronic voting machine. Presiding officers said that although there was no electricity in many centres due to the storm on Tuesday night, there was no problem in taking votes by the EVMs.

The total number of voters in Manirampur, one of the largest Upazilas in the country, is 360,735. Three people are contesting for the post of chairman in the Upazila, four for the post of vice chairman and six for the post of women vice chairman.

Keshabpur Upazila has around 220,000 voters. Seven people are contesting for the post of chairman, five for the post of vice chairman and two for the post of women vice chairman.

Roknuzzaman, presiding officer of the Manirampur Women's College Centre, said, “Voting has started peacefully since this morning. Voters have started coming to the centre.”