Voting began at 7 am and continue till 6 pm. Around 26.72% voter turnout was recorded till 11 am.
Around 2.3 million people across 24 out of 90 constituencies are expected to vote on phase 1 of polling.Voting takes place in three phases – Sept. 18, Sept. 25 and Oct. 1 — followed by counting and results on Oct. 8.
According to the Election Commission of India, nearly 9 million people are registered to vote for the 90-member Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly.
The seats are distributed between the two areas that together make up the union territory – 47 for Kashmir and 43 for Jammu.
A total of 219 candidates are in the fray for the 24 constituencies in the first phase, including 16 in southern Kashmir districts that until recently were the hub of a resurgent anti-India armed insurgency.
From 2018 to Aug. 5, 2019, New Delhi ruled the region directly through a governor who wielded as much authority as an elected government.
It was then made a federally ruled territory and has since been under a lieutenant governor with even more powers.
