Counting of votes to be held at three centres in Ernakulam

Almost a month after polling for the Assembly elections, counting of votes will be held at three centres in the district on Monday. The votes polled on April 9 in 14 constituencies will be counted at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat), Kalamassery, Union Christian College, Aluva, and Mar Athanasius College, Kothamangalam. District Collector G. Priyanka, also the District Election Officer, said on Sunday that all arrangements for the declaration of results are complete.

Strong rooms will be opened at 6:30 a.m. in the presence of candidates or their authorised representatives, and counting will begin at 8 a.m. Postal ballots will be taken up first, followed by votes recorded in electronic voting machines (EVMs). Counting of EVM votes will begin only after the completion of postal ballot rounds. Initial trends are expected by around 10 a.m. The final two rounds of EVM counting will be held only after the completion of postal ballot counting.

Counting will be supervised by Returning Officers in the presence of Election Commission observers and candidates’ agents. A total of 263 tables have been arranged at the counting centres, of which 196 are for EVMs and 67 for postal ballots. Each EVM table will have a micro observer, a counting supervisor and two assistants. For counting postal ballots, each table will have an Assistant Returning Officer, a micro observer, a counting supervisor and two counting assistants.