Top News

Female Voters Steal The Show In Record-Breaking Bengal, Tamil Nadu Elections

Sneha | April 24, 2026 2:11 AM CST

The Election Commission of India has released a full report on the Assembly elections that took place on April 23 in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. The voting concluded on Thursday with historic voter participation, alongside bye-elections in constituencies in Gujarat and Maharashtra. Voting began at 7:00 AM amid tight security and extensive arrangements, with both states recording their highest-ever turnout since Independence.

Record-Breaking Turnout

Tamil Nadu registered a voter turnout of 84.69%, surpassing its previous high of 78.29% in 2011. West Bengal’s Phase I polling saw an even higher turnout of 91.78%, breaking its earlier record of 84.72%, also set in 2011, according to the PIB report.

The elections covered 386 Assembly constituencies across both states, involving over 9.33 crore voters. A total of 1.19 lakh polling stations were set up, supported by nearly 6 lakh polling personnel and over 5,500 candidates.

Women Lead Voter Surge, Outpace Male Turnout

Gender-wise figures highlighted robust and, notably, higher participation among women in both states. In Tamil Nadu, female turnout at 85.76% outpaced male participation at 83.57%, reflecting a continued trend of strong women voter engagement.

A similar pattern was evident in West Bengal, where women recorded an impressive 92.69% turnout, surpassing the already high 90.92% among men.

While participation among the third gender remained comparatively lower—60.49% in Tamil Nadu and 56.79% in West Bengal—the overall data underscores broad-based voter mobilisation across demographics, with women playing a decisive role in driving the record turnout figures.