Clear and sunny weather on Wednesday greeted Delhiites as polling began for the closely fought assembly elections. Of the 1.55 crore registered voters of Delhi, voting slowly picked up during the initial hours as it was a holiday for the residents during the midweek.
Will Aam Admi Party (AAP) secure a third consecutive term, or is Delhi gearing up for a change in leadership? As the first electoral battle of 2025, it is being watched closely not just by the Dellihites but across the country.
A closely fought election is witnessing a triangular contest.
Though most Dellihites had already made up their mind about whom to vote for, many of them kept their choice under wraps. A few “undecided” voters said they would take a call on their way to the polling booth or even just before voting.
In this festival of democracy, 699 candidates are contesting in 70 seats across 13,766 polling booths. The campaign in the final phase had enlivened discussions across the households and social gatherings. As THE WEEK took a round of a few areas, voters could be seen heading to the booths from the rich suburbs of South Delhi to the bustling market of Sarojini Nagar, and even slums.
Geeta Pawar, an elderly voter seen exiting the voting booth holding on to his son for support, expressed her determination and said, “My legs are not gonna stop me from voting. It is my right to vote and I was very excited for this day”. She is hopeful about the health benefits that parties have promised for the elderly of Delhi.
Pankaj, another voter waiting outside while holding the mobile phones of his family members, as electronic devices are not allowed inside the polling booths, appreciated the preparations made by the Election Commission. “The voting process was very smooth and hassle-free,” he said.
Under strict security arrangements, party workers had set up their stalls near the booths. They could be seen helping voters locate their booth numbers while urging them to vote in their favour. As voters crowded a particular stall, it gave indications about support for the candidate.
At some places, parties had even booked auto rickshaws to take voters to the voting station in the hope that this small gesture would transform into electoral support.
As stall workers indicated, menfolk were early to arrive at the polling booths, while women were expected a bit late owing to their household chores. This gave anxious moments to the party managers. As a result, the lines of women are shorter while the men were predictably longer. One could hear the lively chatter coupled with the usual complaints of slow pace.
However, a few citizens were disappointed to not find their names in the voter list, leaving them unable to participate in the democratic process.
Alka, a young college student, cast her vote early in the morning to avoid the crowd. She was particularly pleased that her polling booth was near her house in a government school.
Delhi voters also have very diverse motivations —some are loyal to their preferred parties while others are basing their decision on the promises made by the parties during the campaign. Being a declared holiday, the roads witnessed a rare sparse traffic, and even metro reported lesser crowds.
As polling day marked a crucial event of the festival of democracy in Delhi, all eyes will now be on February 8, when the votes will be counted.
Everyone will be watching, even those who did not vote.