Jammu and Kashmir’s voters continued to turn up in unprecedented numbers to exercise their franchise in the region’s first assembly elections in a decade, enabling a high turnout in the second phase of polls on Wednesday in an area otherwise marred by terrorism and violent boycotts.

According to Election Commission data, the 26 seats in the second phase—15 in Kashmir and 11 in Jammu—recorded an overall turnout of 56.94%. This number will likely be revised upwards.

Chief electoral officer PK Pole said polling went by peacefully, adding, “In Srinagar, which is capital of UT, the polling surpassed the recent Lok Sabha polls which was 22.83%. Srinagar today recorded 29%,” he said.

The turnout carried forward the momentum recorded during this summer’s Lok Sabha polls, when a turnout of 58.46% was recorded, the highest in 35 years. In last week’s first phase of polling for UT’s 24 seats, an impressive turnout of 61.38% was registered.

To be sure, a seat-by-seat comparison is not possible with previous assembly or Lok Sabha polls as the boundaries of the constituencies were changed in a delimitation exercise in 2022.

These are the first assembly polls in the restive region since its special status and statehood were scrapped five years ago, and are likely to be the last step before the Union territory’s statehood is restored.

At Beerwah, where a polling station was set up in a Girls Higher Secondary School, long queues were the norm. “For the past five years the governance in Jammu and Kashmir has been run by officers. We want our own representatives to get elected and resolve our problems,” said Abdul Gani Wani, 65, said. “We are six people in our family and all have voted in the early hours.”

While Reasi district in Jammu witnessed the highest 71.81% turnout, Srinagar recorded the lowest 27.31%. Jammu and Kashmir had recorded its highest overall turnout of 75% in 1987.

“Today is the second phase of voting for the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. I appeal to all voters to cast their votes and play their important role in strengthening democracy. On this occasion, I congratulate all the young friends who are going to vote for the first time,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X in the morning, shortly after voting began.

A total of 239 candidates are in the fray for the second leg of the three-phase electoral battle contest, with the contest poised between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a Congress-National Conference combine, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

A last-minute alliance between Engineer Rashid’s Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) and politico-religious outfit Jamaat-e-Islami — their candidates are contesting as independents—and a host of local parties such as the People’s Conference, the Apni Party, and the Democratic Progressive Azad Party are likely to make inroads and skew the electoral arithmetic.

In the second phase, former chief minister Omar Abdullah, UT’s Congress and BJP chiefs Tariq Hamid Karra and Ravinder Raina, separatist leader Sarjan Ahmad Wagay, popularly known as Barkati, and Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari were among key candidates across six districts located on either side of the Pir Panjal mountain range.

Omar, his sons and father, National Conference president Dr Farooq Abdullah, cast their votes at Ram Munshi polling booth in Srinagar. “If people cast votes, it is not because they are happy with the Centre. They want to take credit for it, which is injustice to the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” Omar said after casting his vote.

Raina, who is contesting from the Nowshera seat in Rajouri district, said that people will opt for the BJP as it brought peace and development to the region.

“There is peace on the borders, there is connectivity to far-flung and rural areas, social schemes have been implemented, and better infrastructure in all sectors of life has been put in place,” he said after voting for the Nowshera constituency.

Issues of statehood, the impact of Article 370’s abrogation, a spike in terror strikes, and development worries are among the rallying points in the high-stakes polls. The last phase of polling to 40 seats is on October 1, with the verdict scheduled for October 8.

The elections are taking place against the backdrop of a string of terror attacks in Jammu, prompting authorities to step up deployment. This year, 14 security personnel and 11 civilians have died in separate attacks in Jammu. Security forces have gunned down 10 terrorists in the region. Reasi, Rajouri, and Poonch — the three Jammu division districts that went to polls on Wednesday—have borne the brunt of these strikes.

At Kangan, enthusiastic voters remained outside a polling station set up in a government school in the main market. “We live in a tourist destination and there has been a spurt in business in the last few years. It has brought jobs, but elections remain important. Our area was witnessing good polling even when most of the Valley was reeling under boycott. We know only our vote can help resolve our issues,” said Javeed Ahmad Khan, who runs a shop at Kangan, now an ST constituency.

The sentiment was different in the neighbouring Ganderbal. Rasiq Ahmad of Reopara village, said, “I never used to vote, but after everything was snatched from us, I have realised the importance. Only votes could change our fate, nothing else.”

These are also the first assembly polls since a controversial delimitation exercise earmarked 47 assembly seats for Kashmir and 43 for Jammu.