Overview
- Polling will be held on November 11 across 122 constituencies, with 3.7 crore voters deciding the fate of 1,302 candidates at 45,399 booths; counting is on November 14.
- Police said vigilance will be tighter than in the first phase, with 150 additional central force companies deployed and border routes with Nepal and neighboring states being sealed.
- The first phase on November 6 logged a record 65.08% turnout, and parties called on supporters to sustain high participation in the concluding round.
- Top leaders closed out a month-long blitz, with Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitish Kumar and Yogi Adityanath on the NDA side, and Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav leading the INDIA bloc.
- Campaign messages split sharply, with the NDA stressing development, security and action against infiltration and Naxalism, while the opposition focused on jobs and social justice and pressed ‘vote theft’ allegations including Rahul Gandhi’s charge naming the PM, the Home Minister and the CEC, and the RJD’s complaint over VVPAT slips in Samastipur.