The poll process to constitute the 17th Lok Sabha will begin from Thursday, 11 April and continue for over a month till Sunday, 19 May. The polling will be held in seven phases and counting of votes will take place on Tuesday, 23 May, the Election Commission announced on Sunday, 10 March, kick-starting a mega electoral battle.
The states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal will go to polls in seven phases. Jammu and Kashmir will have five phases of polling. Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra will have voting in four phases while people in Assam and Chhattisgarh will vote in three phases. Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tripura will have two phases of polling. All the remaining states will vote in a single phase.
General Election Voting Dates and schedule
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 1
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 2
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 3
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 4
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 5
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 6
- Election 2019 Polling Schedule: Phase 7
Given below is the seven-phase division of election voting dates across the Indian states:
| Phases | Polling Dates |
| I | 11-Apr |
| II | Apr-19 |
| III | 23-Apr |
| IV | 29-Apr |
| V | 06-May |
| VI | 12-May |
| VII | 19-May |
Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 1 of Polling
The first phase of polling will take place on 11 April in the following states for election to the respective number of seats – Assam (5), Bihar (4), Chhattisgarh (1), J&K (2), Maharashtra (7), Manipur (1), Meghalaya (2), Mizoram (1) , Nagaland (1), Odisha (4), Sikkim (1), Telangana (17), Tripura (1), Uttar Pradesh (8), Uttarakhand (5), West Bengal (2), Andaman & Nicobar (1), Lakshadweep (1).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Andhra Pradesh | 25 | Apr-11 |
| Arunachal | 2 | Apr-11 |
| Assam | 5 | Apr-11 |
| Bihar | 4 | Apr-11 |
| Chhatisgrah | 1 | Apr-11 |
| J&K | 2 | Apr-11 |
| Maharashtra | 7 | Apr-11 |
| Manipur | 1 | Apr-11 |
| Meghalaya | 2 | Apr-11 |
| Mizoram | 1 | Apr-11 |
| Nagaland | 1 | Apr-11 |
| Odisha | 4 | Apr-11 |
| Sikkim | 1 | Apr-11 |
| Telangana | 17 | Apr-11 |
| Tripura | 1 | Apr-11 |
| UP | 8 | Apr-11 |
| Uttarakhand | 5 | Apr-11 |
| West Bengal | 2 | Apr-11 |
| Andaman | 1 | Apr-11 |
| Lakshadweep | 1 | Apr-11 |
Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 2 of Polling
The voting for the second phase of LS elections 2019 will take place on 18 April in the following states – Assam (5), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (3), J&K (2), Karnataka (14), Maharashtra (10), Manipur (1), Odisha (5), Tamil Nadu (39), Tripura (1), UP (8), West Bengal (3), Puducherry (1).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Assam | 5 | Apr-18 |
| Bihar | 5 | Apr-18 |
| Chhattisgarh | 3 | Apr-18 |
| J&K | 2 | Apr-18 |
| Karnataka | 14 | Apr-18 |
| Maharashtra | 10 | Apr-18 |
| Manipur | 1 | Apr-18 |
| Odisha | 5 | Apr-18 |
| Tamil Nadu | 39 | Apr-18 |
| Tripura | 1 | Apr-18 |
| UP | 8 | Apr-18 |
| West Bengal | 3 | Apr-18 |
| Puducherry | 1 | Apr-18 |
Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 3 of Polling
The third phase of polling will take place on 23 April in the following states for election to the respective number of seats – Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Gujarat (26), Goa (2), J&K (1), Karnataka (14), Kerala (20), Maharashtra (14), Odisha (6), UP (10), West Bengal (5), Dadra and Nagar (1), Haveli (1), Daman and Diu (1).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Assam | 4 | Apr-23 |
| Bihar | 5 | Apr-23 |
| Chhattisgarh | 7 | Apr-23 |
| Gujarat | 26 | Apr-23 |
| Goa | 2 | Apr-23 |
| J&K | 1 | Apr-23 |
| Karnataka | 14 | Apr-23 |
| Kerala | 20 | Apr-23 |
| Maharashtra | 14 | Apr-23 |
| Odisha | 6 | Apr-23 |
| UP | 10 | Apr-23 |
| West Bengal | 5 | Apr-23 |
| Dadra and Nagar | 1 | Apr-23 |
| Haveli | 1 | Apr-23 |
| Daman and Diu | 1 | Apr-23 |
Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 4 of Polling
People in the following states will vote in the fourth phase of polling scheduled to take place on 29 April – Bihar (5) , J&K (1), Jharkhand (3), MP (6), Maharashtra (17), Odisha (6), Rajasthan (13), Uttar Pradesh (13), West Bengal (8).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Bihar | 5 | Apr-29 |
| J&K | 1 | Apr-29 |
| Jharkhand | 3 | Apr-29 |
| MP | 6 | Apr-29 |
| Maharashtra | 17 | Apr-29 |
| Odisha | 6 | Apr-29 |
| Rajasthan | 13 | Apr-29 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 13 | Apr-29 |
| West Bengal | 8 | Apr-29 |
Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 5 of Polling
People in Bihar will vote for another 5 seats in Phase 5 of polling scheduled to be held on 6 May. The following states will also vote for the respective seats – J&K (2), Jharkhand (4), MP (7), Rajasthan (12), Uttar Pradesh (14) and West Bengal (7).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Bihar | 5 | May-06 |
| J&K | 2 | May-06 |
| Jharkhand | 4 | May-06 |
| MP | 7 | May-06 |
| Rajasthan | 12 | May-06 |
| UP | 14 | May-06 |
| West Bengal | 7 | May-06 |
Lok Sabha Election 2019: Phase 6 of Polling
Polling for the sixth phase to constitute the 17th Lok Sabha will take place on 12 May. People in the following states will vote in this phase – Bihar (8), Haryana (10), Jharkhand (4), MP (8), UP (14), West Bengal (8) and Delhi-NCR (7).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Bihar | 8 | May-12 |
| Haryana | 10 | May-12 |
| Jharkhand | 4 | May-12 |
| MP | 8 | May-12 |
| UP | 14 | May-12 |
| West Bengal | 8 | May-12 |
| Delhi NCR | 7 | May-12 |
General Election 2019: Phase 7 of Polling
The seventh and last phase of polling will take place on 19 May in the following states for election to the respective number of seats – Bihar (8), Jharkhand (8), MP (13), Punjab (9), West Bengal (1), Chandigarh (1), UP (13) and Himachal (4).
| State | Lok Sabha Seats | Voting Date |
| Bihar | 8 | May-19 |
| Jharkhand | 8 | May-19 |
| MP | 13 | May-19 |
| Punjab | 9 | May-19 |
| West Bengal | 1 | May-19 |
| Chandigarh | 1 | May-19 |
| UP | 13 | May-19 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 4 | May-19 |
The states of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim will hold both the Assembly elections and Lok Sabha polls, simultaneously.
Number of Voters, Polling Stations Go Up, 1.5 Crore New Voters Join
The number of people eligible to vote in Lok Sabha polls has increased by 8.4 crore as compared to 2014 general election, and these include 1.5 crore "young voters" who are in the 18-19 age group and would exercise their franchise first time, according to the Election Commission.
The EC panel will set up nearly 10.35 lakh polling stations in the country, as compared to nearly 9.28 lakh set up during 2014 polls. This marks an increase of 10.1 percent.
"The increase is largely due to rationalisation of polling stations, which the Commission undertook in the recent years," the EC said.
Nearly 39.6 lakh electronic voting machines and 17.4 lakh paper trail or voter verifiable paper trail machines would be used in these polling stations.
(With inputs from PTI)
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