Voting begins for second phase of Kerala civic polls

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 5 Voting began on Thursday in seven districts in the second and the final phase of Kerala's civic polls.

Voting began at 7.00 a.m., and will end at 5.00 p.m.

According to the State Election Commission, five percent of the electorate had already cast their ballots at the end of the first hour.

Over 14 million voters will be eligible to decide the political fate of more than 40,000 candidates vying for 12651 seats in the seven districts -- Pathanamthitta ,Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Malappuram.

The first phase took place on Monday.

The final results of the polls, which will be out on Saturday, is going to be a game changer in the political scenario of the state.

Ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) party led by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said that they will retain power, when the Left opposition has said that the outcome of this poll would signal the start of the downfall of the UDF.

BJP party which is yet to open its account in the 140 member Kerala assembly and has around 500 seats in the outgoing local bodies in the state, has claimed that they would be the party that will be the biggest gainer, when the results of this polls will be announced.