YOUNG...
As people began queuing up at govt higher secondary school in Kandanchavadi on Friday, Saranya Krishnan was both confused and excited. Like many youngsters in the city, the 19-year-old was waiting to vote in the
Lok Sabha elections
for the first time on Friday.
Less than 40% of voters between 18 and 19 had registered for the 2024 elections across the country according to
ECI
.
When TOI spoke to them, family discussions, political memes and social media defined their choices.
This was the case for Avantika K, 22, of Thoraipakkam. “I was expecting to see a list of four to five candidates. But I got overwhelmed when I saw 41 candidates on the machine. I felt I didn’t read up enough and made a choice that was mostly influenced by what my parents discussed at home,” she said.
Like many of her peers, she expressed a sense of detachment from the
political landscape
. Poorni S, a research analyst who travelled from Bengaluru to Chennai to cast her vote at Anjuham Higher Secondary School in West Mambalam, was accompanied by her father. Poorni studied party manifestos in search of a compelling reason to support a candidate.
“I am concerned about welfare schemes and rising cost of living. I am hoping that in the coming years, I will be more involved in understanding governance. Next time, I will make a better decision,” she said.
Meanwhile, many voters in their 30s also showed up to vote for the first time despite having got their voter cards years ago. Some attributed their previous lack of participation to disinterest, while others cited difficulties in acquiring their voter ID. Priya Ganesh, 28, from Nandanam said, “As I am growing older, I can relate to more issues around me. This time I realised that it is fair to hold our elected representatives accountable only if I care to vote.”
...& OLD
They have seen the struggle for Independence and the fruit of democracy from colonial rule, and are now battling old age but stepping out to vote.
“I had the opportunity to vote for the first time in the 1957 general election, and my joy knew no bounds,” said Kamakshi K, 87, of Velachery. She is a cancer patient.
Many
senior citizens
, some of them with their children, were allowed to vote on priority. At the corporation school behind Anna Arivalayam in Teynampet, a frail 88-year-old Lakshmi was ferried in a wheelchair by Urbaser Sumeet’s conservancy staff. “I will not give up my vote for anyone. Even if I am bedridden, I will vote. It is a shame that many do not vote. They do not know how lucky they are to choose their leaders,” she said.
Polling staff also escorted senior citizens to polling booths by holding their hands. Sethumani, 93, cast his vote in a booth in Nandanam Govt School with a polling escort holding his hand. “I did not opt for postal ballot because going in person and voting is a exciting,” he said. “I do not know if I will be alive for the next Lok Sabha elections, and I want to experience the thrill one more time, if it is my last.”
The determination for senior citizens to vote goes beyond exercising their democratic right. “I came to vote because this democracy must remain a democracy no matter what,” she said. “It can’t go back to a rule like the British era where people don’t have any rights,” said S Saraswathy, 85, a resident of Kottivakkam, cast her vote in Nellai Nadar School, and came with her son.
However, not all could go out and vote. Kamala V, 82, a voter in KK Nagar and a resident of Chromepet said she could not vote as there was no one to take her to the booth.
English (US) ·