45% votes cast till 2pm in Rangpur city polls: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal today said 45 percent votes have been cast till 2pm in Rangpur City Corporation elections.

"We received some allegations of slow voting due to electronic voting machines (EVMs) but all voters will be allowed to exercise their franchise till night if needed," he said while talking to reporters at Election Commission Bhaban.

The election commission is following the polls from a control room as nearly 1,807 CCTV cameras have been installed at polling booths.

Election Commissioners Brigadier General (retd) Ahsan Habib Khan, Md Alamgir, Anisur Rahman and Squadron Leader Shahrier Alam were present in the control room to observe the voting.

Voting in Rangpur City Corporation started this morning at 229 centres using electronic voting machines (EVMs).

Nine candidates are vying for the mayoral post while 183 people are contesting for councillor posts under 33 wards. Sixty-eight candidates are contesting the polls for 11 reserved seats, said Returning Officer Abdul Baten.

The mayoral candidates are: Amiruzzaman from Islami Andolon Bangladesh, Abu Raihan from Bangladesh Congress, Touhidur Rahman Mandal from Khelafat Majlish, Mostafizur Rahman from Jatiya Party, Shafier Rahman from Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, Hosne Ara Lutfa Dalia from Awami League, Khorshed Alam from Zaker Party, Mehedi Hasan and Latifur Rahman as independent candidates.

This year, a total of 4,26,470 voters are expected to vote in the city corporation election.

Mobile court drives were being conducted to ensure that the election code is followed, he said.

The first Rangpur City Corporation election was held on December 21, 2017. The tenure of the current mayor will expire on February 18, 2023.