 "Gujarat Election: Final voter turnout in first phase of polling stands at 66.75%, announces EC")
Ahmedabad: The final voter turnout in the first phase of the Gujarat elections for 89 seats on Saturday stood at 66.75 percent, the Election Commission said on Sunday. The poll panel on Saturday declared an estimated 68 percent voter turnout. [caption id=“attachment_4251965” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. AP[/caption] In the 2012 elections, 71.32 percent voter turnout was recorded in Gujarat for all the 182 seats. The 89 seats that went to polls yesterday are in the Saurashtra, Kutch and South Gujarat regions. The EC on Saturday said it would announce the final figures on Sunday since the process of collecting and tabulating the poll data from the 19 districts was not finished until last evening. The voter turnout for the first phase remained 66.75 percent. Out of 2.12 crore voters in the regions, 1.41 crore exercised their franchise in the 89 seats in 19 districts, according to a release issued by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer for Gujarat. According to the final data released on Sunday, tribal-dominated Narmada district witnessed the highest turnout at 79.15 percent while Devbhumi-Dwarka seat in the Saurashtra region saw the lowest turnout at 59.39 percent. While 12 districts recorded a voter turnout of less than 70 percent, seven registered the polling percentage of 70 percent, it said. Narmada district comprises Dediapada and Nandod constituencies — both reserved seats currently held by the BJP. BJP MLA Motilal Vasava is fighting against Mahesh Vasava, son of rebel JD(U) leader Chhotubhai Vasava in crucial tribal-dominated Dediapada seat. Vasava is contesting as the candidate of the Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP), floated by his father ahead of elections. In Dwarka constituency, the main fight is between the BJP and the Congress. Prominent candidates in the first-phase poll battle included Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Congress’s Shaktisinh Gohil and Paresh Dhanani. The second and final phase of elections for remaining 93 seats will be held on 14 December. Counting of votes will be conducted on 18 December. _**Click here for detailed coverage of Gujarat Assembly Election 2017**_
Out of 2.12 crore voters in the regions, 1.41 crore exercised their franchise in the 89 seats in 19 districts, according to the Chief Electoral Officer for Gujarat
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