Women voters again outnumber men voters in Mizoram

Women voters have once again outnumbered men voters in Mizoram who constitute over 51.56 per cent of the total 8,56,364 electorate for the lone Mizoram Lok Sabha constituency, where elections will be held in the first phase of voting on April 19, officials said on Friday.

According to election officials, like all previous elections, 4,41,559 women voters outnumbered the male electorate of 4,14,805 in the electoral rolls, which were published early this year after a special summary revision of the voters’ list.

Of the eleven districts in Mizoram, only in the Mamit district, the number of male voters (32,856) is higher than their female (32,278) counterparts.

The officials said that in last year’s November 7 Mizoram assembly election, 1.21 per cent more women voters exercised their franchise than their men counterparts.

Around 80.66 per cent (6,87,334) of the total of 8.57 lakh voters exercised their franchise in the assembly polls in which female voters’ turnout was 81.25 per cent while 80.04 per cent male voters cast their votes across the mountainous state.

Like the 2019 parliamentary elections, a multi-corner contest will be held in Mizoram’s lone Lok Sabha seat as six candidates including a woman are in the fray.

The ruling Zoram People’s Movement, which is contesting the Lok Sabha election for the first time, has put up entrepreneur Richard Vanlalhmangaiha while the opposition Mizo National Front (MNF) fielded its sitting Rajya Sabha member K. Vanlalvena, the Congress nominated Lalbiakzama and BJP put up its state President Vanlalhmuaka.

The lone female nominee Rita Malsawmi, a singer and lyricist, was fielded by the Mizoram People’s Conference and one independent candidate vying for the Mizoram Lok Sabha seat, reserved for the tribals.

Congress candidate Lalbiakzama (64) is a former police officer and Mizoram’s ex-Home Secretary.

MNF’s sitting Lok Sabha member from Mizoram C. Lalrosanga had expressed his reluctance to contest again, prompting the party to choose Vanlalvena.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, six candidates including a woman, had contested.

Meanwhile, the Mizoram government has declared April 19 as a paid holiday for every person employed in any business, trade, industrial undertaking or any other establishment and registered as voters in Mizoram to enable them to exercise their franchise in the Lok Sabha poll.