As voting for Phase 1 of the 2019 Lok Sabha election gets underway, IndiaToday.in brings you numbers that explain the significance of the seats that that are going to the poll today. The 2019 Lok Sabha election is being conducted in seven phases and the results will be declared on May 23.
What's at stake in Phase 1:
Seats: A total of 91 Lok Sabha seats (nearly 17 per cent of the overall Lok Sabha seats) will take part in the 2019 Lok Sabha election Phase 1 today.
States involved: The 91 seats are spread across 18 states and two Union territories. The states and Union territories are: Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Sikkim, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.
Follow IndiaToday.in's LIVE coverage on Lok Sabha election phase 1
Electorate size: Nearly 14.21 crore people are eligible to vote in the 2019 Lok Sabha election Phase 1, for which voting is being held today. Of the 14.21 crore people, 7.22 crore are men and 8.99 crore are women.
Total candidates: The total number of candidates whose fate will be decided by the voters in the 2019 Lok Sabha election Phase 1 stands at 1,279. A party-wise breakout of candidates reveals that 83 of these are from the BJP, 83 from Congress, 33 from BSP, 26 from YSR Congress, 25 from TDP, 17 from TRS and 1,279 of them are Independents and others.
Woman candidates: There are 89 woman candidates taking part in the first phase. This is 7 per cent of the total candidates who are in the fray today.
Polling booths: To facilitate a smooth voting experience for voters, the Election Commission has set up 1.70 lakh polling booths for seats that are going to the poll in the first phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha election.
Key candidates: Phase 1 of the 2019 Lok Sabha election will test many popular political faces. Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, VK Singh, Kiren Rijiju, former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat, Ajit Singh, Jayant Chaudhary, Chirag Paswan, former Bihar CM Jeetanram Manjhi, and Asaduddin Owaisi, are among the key candidates contesting in this phase.
Candidates with criminal background: 27 per cent of the Congress candidates and 19 per cent of the BJP candidates fielded for the first phase of the 2019 Lok Sabha election have serious criminal charges registered against them, according to an analysis by ADR India. The two national parties have fielded 83 candidates each for the first phase of the election.