Maharashtra Assembly Election 2024: 65% Voter Turnout Marks Highest Participation in 30 Years; Kolhapur Leads, Mumbai Lags
Maharashtra Assembly Election 2024: 65% Voter Turnout Marks Highest Participation in 30 Years; Kolhapur Leads, Mumbai Lags
Mumbai: Maharashtra recorded an impressive 65.11% voter turnout in the 2024 Assembly elections, marking the highest participation in three decades. Compared to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections held six months ago, voter turnout saw a noticeable rise. In rural areas, enthusiasm was high, while urban centers like Mumbai, Pune, Thane, and Nagpur remained relatively less engaged. Voting continued until 9 PM in districts like Nashik, delaying the final tally of district-wise data.
As per the Election Commission’s figures released at 11:45 PM, 65.11% of eligible voters cast their votes statewide.
Highs and Lows in Voter Turnout
Kolhapur’s Kagal constituency recorded the highest turnout at 82%, where a heated contest was observed between Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) candidate Samarjit Singh Ghatge.
In contrast, Kalyan West constituency had the lowest turnout at 41%, reflecting voter apathy. Despite concentrated efforts by the Election Commission to increase voting in key urban constituencies, areas like Colaba constituency in Mumbai, housing major government institutions like the Secretariat, recorded only 45% voter turnout.
Highest Turnout in Three Decades
This year’s elections saw the highest voter turnout in 30 years, with 65.11% turnout as of 6 PM on election day. The last such high participation was in 1995, with 71.69%. Notably, turnout surpassed the 61.39% from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the 61.4% from the 2019 Assembly elections. The 3.7% increase in voter turnout compared to the last Assembly elections could play a decisive role in shaping the results.
In 2019, Maharashtra had 8.85 crore registered voters, which increased by 9.5% over the past five years to reach 9.69 crore voters in 2024.
District-Wise Voter Turnout Figures
| District | Turnout (%) |
|---|---|
| Ahmednagar | 71.73% |
| Akola | 64.98% |
| Amravati | 65.57% |
| Aurangabad | 68.89% |
| Beed | 67.79% |
| Bhandara | 69.42% |
| Buldhana | 70.32% |
| Chandrapur | 71.27% |
| Dhule | 64.70% |
| Gadchiroli | 73.68% |
| Gondia | 69.53% |
| Hingoli | 71.10% |
| Jalgaon | 64.42% |
| Jalna | 72.30% |
| Kolhapur | 76.25% |
| Latur | 66.92% |
| Mumbai City | 52.07% |
| Mumbai Suburban | 55.77% |
| Nagpur | 60.49% |
| Nanded | 64.92% |
| Nandurbar | 69.15% |
| Nashik | 67.57% |
| Osmanabad | 64.27% |
| Palghar | 65.95% |
| Parbhani | 70.38% |
| Pune | 61.05% |
| Raigad | 67.23% |
| Ratnagiri | 64.55% |
| Sangli | 71.89% |
| Satara | 71.71% |
| Sindhudurg | 68.40% |
| Solapur | 67.36% |
| Thane | 56.05% |
| Wardha | 68.30% |
| Washim | 66.01% |
| Yavatmal | 69.02% |
Kolhapur district stood out with the highest engagement at 76.25%, while urban centers like Mumbai City and Suburban recorded 52.07% and 55.77%, respectively.
