The fate of 699 candidates was sealed today as Delhi voted to elect a new 70-member house. The turnout touched 57.7 percent at 5 pm against 2020's 54.2 percent for the same period. The total turnout in the 2020 assembly election that led to a second term for Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was 62.82 percent, 4.65 percent lower than 67.47 percent in 2015.
The New Delhi seat of Mr Kejriwal recorded a turnout of 54.27 percent at 5 pm. Chief Minister Atishi's constituency recorded a turnout of 51.81 percent. Former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia's Jungpura seat recorded 55.23 percent voting.
The Greater Kailash seat of Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj recorded 52 percent voting.
The 1.5 crore eligible voters in Delhi chose their representatives from 699 candidates - 603 men and 95 women - in a direct fight between the AAP, BJP and Congress.
The voting day saw the AAP and BJP indulge in an intense blame game over alleged malpractices even as the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Delhi insisted that the election process was going on "smoothly". While the AAP claimed its rival party was distributing money, the BJP levelled a "fake voters" charge against the ruling party.
The AAP is eyeing a third term on its own in Delhi while the BJP is hoping to cash in the anti-incumbency factory. As far as the Congress is concerned, its 2025 poll campaign spotlighted the achievements of its 15-year rule under Sheila Dikshit.
In the 2020 assembly elections, the AAP won 62 seats and BJP secured eight seats while Congress failed to open its account. A rookie politician back then, Arvind Kejriwal defeated three-time chief minister Dikshit in 2013 from her New Delhi constituency.
Meanwhile, most exit polls today predicted a BJP sweep in the national capital, giving second position to AAP.
The Delhi assembly election votes will be counted on February 8.
