Karnataka election results 2023: Over 2.6 lakh voters who exercised their franchise in the May 10 Karnataka assembly polls used the 'none of the above' or NOTA option, according to Election Commission figures. According to figures available around 3.30 pm, 2,59,278 (0.7 per cent) out of the nearly 3.84 crore people who came out to vote on Wednesday exercised the NOTA option.
The NOTA option on electronic voting machines (EVMs) was introduced in 2013 and it has its own symbol- a ballot paper with a black cross on it. After a Supreme Court order in September 2013, the Election Commission had added the NOTA button on EVMs as the last option on the voting panel.
Prior to the apex court's order, those not inclined to vote for any candidate had the option of registering their decision under Rule 49-O (elector deciding not to vote) of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961. But this compromised the secrecy of the voter.
The NOTA button on an EVM ensures secrecy of ballot. The Supreme Court had, however, refused to direct the Election Commission to hold fresh polls if the majority of the electorate exercises the NOTA option while voting. The NOTA symbol was designed by the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, for the poll panel.
Congress party wins with thumping majority:
On Saturday, a resurgent Congress appeared to be heading for a comfortable majority in Karnataka and on track to wrest power from the BJP in its lone southern citadel, which appears to have been hit by anti-incumbency. The show was meant to boost morale ahead of the Lok Sabha elections next year.
The most recent statistics from the Election Commission show that the party led by M Mallikarjun Kharge won 10 seats and was leading in another 126 segments. This is a lot more than the 113 votes needed for a simple majority in the House, which has 224 members.
Decisions were hung on May 10 and the counting of surveyed votes was taken up on Saturday.
The JD(S) led by former Chief Minister H D Deve Gowda, which was anticipated to play a key role in the event of a hung verdict, came out victorious in one seat and was leading in 19 other segments. The BJP, which won 104 seats in the previous Assembly elections, was ahead in 60 seats after four. Four segments were dominated by others.
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