Elections to the three-tier local self-Government institutions in Kerala, considered as the semi-finals for the Assembly polls to be held within seven months, will take place in two phases on November 2 and 5, the State Election Commission (SEC) has said. Counting of votes will be held on November 7 and the results will be announced on the same day.
“With this announcement, the Model Code of Conduct has come into force,” State Election Commissioner K Sasidharan Nair told mediapersons in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday. New governing councils would come into being in the local self-Government institutions before November 17.
Polling will take place on November 2 in the first phase in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Idukki, Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kannur and Kasaragod districts. In the second phase, polling will be held on November 5 in the remaining seven districts — Kottayam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Malappuram.
The notification for the civic polls would be issued on October 7, said Sasidharan Nair. The last day for filing nomination papers will be October 14, scrutiny will be carried on October 15 and the last date for withdrawing nominations will be October 17. Electronic voting machines will be used for the election throughout the State.
As per normal schedule, civic elections should have been held in the State in October itself and new councils were to be in place by November 1 as the current term of the local bodies will come to a close on October 31. However, the process had to be delayed due to serious errors in the delimitation of gram panchayats.
Elections are being held in 941 gram panchayats, 152 block panchayats, 14 district panchayats, 86 municipalities and six city corporations. About 35,000 booths would be arranged for the polling in a total of 21,871 constituencies (wards), Nair said, adding that there would be no option to vote for NOTA this time.
Of the total 941 positions of gram panchayat presidents, 471 are reserved for women as per the norm of 50-per cent reservation. likewise, 77 of the 152 positions of block panchayat presidents will go to women while they will become presidents in seven of the total 14 positions of district panchayat presidents.
Preparations by political parties for the local elections have already attained a feverish momentum. The Congress-led ruling UDF’s focus is on efforts to retain the upper hand it had gained in the 2010 polls. The result of the elections is going to be viewed as a pointer to the outcome of the Assembly elections to be held next year.
“The Congress and the UDF will face the election in total unity and that will ensure our victory,” said Congress Chief Minister Oommen Chandy. Congress Working Committee member AK Antony said the fight would be between the UDF and the lDF but the left did not have the “health and people’s support” it required to face the situation.
The poll is presenting a question of survival to the terribly fatigued CPI(M)-led Opposition lDF.