Voting Under Way for Manjalpur Bypoll in Gujarat

Voting began at 7 a.m. on Thursday (July 30, 2026) for the byelection to the Manjalpur Assembly seat in Gujarat’s Vadodara district. Polling will continue till 6 p.m., while the counting of votes is scheduled for August 3, according to the office of the Gujarat Chief Electoral Officer.

The bypoll was necessitated by the death of senior BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Yogesh Patel on June 2 after a prolonged illness. Patel was an eight-time legislator who had represented the seat (and earlier Raopura) for over three decades.

The contest has narrowed to a direct fight between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress. The BJP has fielded former Vadodara Municipal Corporation councillor Satish Govindbhai Patel, while the Congress has nominated its Gujarat Vice-President and former minister Bhikhabhai Rabari. Manjalpur has traditionally been a BJP stronghold; in the 2022 Assembly elections, Yogesh Patel secured a massive victory with over 77% of the votes.

A total of 2.19 lakh citizens are eligible to vote, including 1,11,645 men, 1,07,847 women and two third-gender voters. Polling is being conducted at 260 stations set up across 62 locations, with an average of 844 voters per booth. Early turnout figures indicated a modest start, with around 6% polling recorded in the first few hours.

Election authorities have completed all administrative, security and technical arrangements. For the first time, mobile deposit centres have been set up at polling locations so that voters can safely leave their phones before entering the booths. Other measures include 100% webcasting of all polling stations, real-time monitoring, special facilities for senior citizens and differently-abled voters, and rain contingency plans in view of the monsoon. Over 1,400 security personnel have been deployed.

District officials have appealed to voters to exercise their franchise in large numbers and ensure a free, fair and peaceful election. The outcome of the Manjalpur bypoll will be watched as a test of the BJP’s ability to retain its traditional bastion in Vadodara and as a reflection of local political currents in Gujarat.