Record Voter Turnout in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal Assembly Elections Amid Electoral Roll Revisions and Competing Victory Claims
Introduction
On April 23, 2026, assembly elections in Tamil Nadu (all 234 seats) and the first phase of West Bengal''s elections (152 seats) ended with historically high voter participation. Both states reported turnout percentages that broke previous records, despite significant removals from electoral rolls. The voting was mostly peaceful, although West Bengal saw occasional incidents of violence.
Main Body
In Tamil Nadu, the Election Commission recorded a voter turnout of 85.11% by 11 p.m., beating the previous high of 78.29% in 2011. This means about 48.8 million people voted out of 57.3 million registered voters, an increase from the 43.4 million who voted in the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The highest constituency turnout was in Veerapandi (93.41%) and the lowest in Palayamkottai (68.97%). The state had removed 11.6% of its voters during a special revision process. In West Bengal, the first phase saw a turnout of 92.35% by 11 p.m., the highest for these 152 constituencies since at least the 2011 assembly elections. The absolute number of voters, 33.2 million, also exceeded the 31.52 million in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, despite a 9.9% removal of voters in these seats. The highest constituency turnout was in Murarai (96.95%) and the lowest in Mekhliganj (82.12%). In both states, women voters outnumbered men. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar described the turnout as the highest since independence for both states. However, a preliminary analysis by Hindustan Times indicated that 10 constituencies in West Bengal likely saw a drop in absolute turnout compared to 2024, with Samserganj experiencing the largest decrease (18.9%). This analysis applied the reported turnout percentage to the final elector count after legal decisions, noting possible small errors due to service voters not counted and extra voters added after the revision. The report also noted that only in Samserganj was the decline larger than the 2024 Lok Sabha victory margin. Both ruling and opposition parties interpreted the high turnout as favorable to their chances. Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that the record polling showed a certain victory for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee asserted that the turnout reflected a fight to save democratic rights and signaled her party''s win. In Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said ''Tamil Nadu will win,'' while AIADMK chief Edappadi K. Palaniswami expressed confidence in his party''s return to power. The election also featured the entry of actor-politician Vijay''s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) as a third force. Sporadic violence was reported in West Bengal, including clashes in Murshidabad, Birbhum, Cooch Behar, and Dakshin Dinajpur, with crude bombs thrown and attacks on candidates. Police arrested 41 people and took 571 into preventive custody. BJP candidate Suvendu Sarkar was allegedly attacked by TMC supporters, and BJP candidate Agnimitra Paul reported stones thrown at her vehicle. State CEO Manoj Agarwal described the incidents as not major in terms of law and order. In Tamil Nadu, no major violence was reported. Additionally, 1.4 million people in West Bengal asked to have their names restored after removal, but courts approved only 139.
Conclusion
The record voter turnouts in both states have been used by competing parties as evidence of electoral momentum in their favor. The final results, to be announced on counting day, will decide whether the DMK keeps power in Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK makes a comeback, or new parties change the political landscape, and whether the BJP can defeat the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal after 15 years.