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Election Commission of India, Lok Sabha Election Schedule: Setting the stage for a political battle spread across two months, the Election Commission of India on Saturday (March 16) announced that the 18th Lok Sabha elections will be held in seven phases, between April 19 and June 1, involving nearly 97 crore voters.

The results will be declared on June 4, twelve days before the term of the current House expires on June 16.

With the announcement of the poll schedule, the Model Code of Conduct(MCC) which bars the government in power from announcing any new decisions, comes into effect immediately.

Assembly elections for Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim will also be held simultaneously. Voting for Andhra Pradesh’s 175 assembly seats will be held on May 13. Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim are scheduled to go to the polls on April 19. Elections in Odisha will be held across four phases between May 13 and June 1. The results of all the four state elections will be declared on June 4, the day when the results of the Lok Sabha polls will also be declared.

However, the Election Commission decided against holding the J&K state polls at the same time for security reasons.

For the Lok Sabha polls, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar will have the longest voting schedule across seven phases. This is followed by Maharashtra and Jammu & Kashmir in five phases; Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha in four phases; Assam and Chattisgarh in three phases; and, Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tripura in two phases. The remaining states and Union Territories will go to polls on a single day.

The first phase of elections on April 19 covers the maximum number of states — 102 constituencies across 21 states. The second phase on April 26 will cover 89 constituencies across 13 states. The third phase is scheduled for May 7, covering 94 constituencies in 12 states, followed by 96 seats in 10 states on May 13. In the fifth phase, 49 seats in eight states will vote on May 20. The sixth phase will take place in 57 seats in seven states on May 25 and the seventh phase in 57 seats across eight states on June 1.

Addressing the press briefing, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, nearly 97 crore people are eligible to cast vote in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls at 10.5 lakh polling stations. More than 55 lakh electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used.

As many as 49.7 crore are male voters, 47.1 crore are female, 1.8 crore first-time voters, 19.74 crore young voters, 82 lakh voters above the age of 85, 88.4 lakh persons with disabilities (PwDs), 19.1 lakh service electors, 48,000 transgender persons and 2.18 lakh centenarians.

CEC Rajiv Kumar further said the Election Commission has taken all measures to keep the polls corruption-free by keeping a check on four main factors – muscle power, money power, misinformation and violation of model code of conduct. He asserted that the election panel has launched a ruthless fight against poll violence.