Mandi Panchayat Elections 2026: Sundernagar Records Highest Voter Turnout at 83%, Women Lead Participation

The first phase of the Panchayati Raj Institution elections witnessed enthusiastic participation across Mandi district on Tuesday, with Sundernagar block emerging as the top performer by recording an impressive 83 per cent voter turnout.

According to election officials, thousands of voters turned up at polling booths across 198 gram panchayats, reflecting strong public interest in local governance and rural leadership. The peaceful polling process and active participation, especially among women voters, became one of the biggest highlights of the day.

Karsog block followed closely behind Sundernagar with a voter turnout of 82.26 per cent. Returning Officer and SDM Karsog, Gaurav Mahajan, confirmed that 12,365 voters exercised their franchise out of the total 15,031 registered voters in the block.

Women Voters Outnumber Men in Karsog

One of the most notable aspects of the elections was the strong participation of women voters in Karsog. Officials revealed that female voter turnout reached 84.07 per cent, surpassing the male turnout of 80.54 per cent.

Election authorities described the polling process in Karsog as peaceful and well-organised throughout the day, with no major disruptions reported from the area.

The higher participation of women voters is being seen as a positive sign for grassroots democracy and increasing political awareness in rural Himachal Pradesh.

Voting Percentage in Other Blocks

Apart from Sundernagar and Karsog, several other blocks in Mandi district also recorded encouraging voter participation.

• Chauntra block registered 69.69 per cent voter turnout
• Gopalpur block recorded 72.92 per cent turnout
• Darang block witnessed 79.33 per cent polling

Officials stated that detailed voting data from a few remaining blocks was still awaited at the time of reporting.

Polling Deferred in Two Gram Panchayats

Meanwhile, elections for Panchayat Samiti member posts in Thach Tharmi and Parlog gram panchayats were postponed due to technical reasons.

Election authorities said fresh polling dates for these seats would be announced later as per the directions issued by the State Election Commission.

Counting Underway, Results Expected Soon

The counting of votes for the posts of pradhan, vice-pradhan, and ward members began soon after polling concluded. Officials said the results for these posts were expected to be declared by late evening.

However, the results for the zila parishad member elections will be announced on May 31.

The strong turnout across Mandi district highlights growing voter engagement in local body elections and underlines the importance villagers are placing on grassroots development and governance.

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