City scores a high with

MUMBAI: For the first time in 15 years and after three Assembly elections, Mumbai, on Wednesday, crossed the 50% threshold to register a 52.43% voter turnout.

While it may have looked like that enthusiasm and the crowd at polling booths was far less than the Lok Sabha elections, the numbers tell a different story.

The voter turnout during the Lok Sabha polls was 51.59%.

The city’s voting percentage and on ground situation across its 36 constituencies indicated a “vote for change” with highest polling occurring in constituencies like Wadala (Matunga, King Circle, Hindu Colony), Mahim, Mulund, Ghatkopar (East), Borivli, Malabar Hill —areas where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena have their core vote banks.

In the past three elections, the city recorded 44.9% voting in 1999, 48.4% in 2004 and 46.1% in 2009.

Higher turnout typically spells trouble for incumbents.

Political observers pointed out that like in the Lok Sabha polls, trends indicated strong anti-incumbency vote, apart from mobilisation by parties like the Sena and strong candidates from Congress and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS).

An element of unpredictability, however, cannot be ruled out in a multi-cornered contest, as candidates rally their core vote banks.

The highest voting percentage was registered in Wadala (59.6%) and Mahim (59.5%), while the lowest polling occurred in Versova (40.33%).

In the island city, Mumbadevi registered a high polling at 59.2%, which indicates mobilisation of the minority vote bank.

Both the Marathi manoos, largely from chawls and slums, and the Gujarati community