Decoding The Process: How EVM Votes Are Counted

The Election Commission on Monday said that the postal ballot would be taken up for counting first, and the counting of EVMs would start only half an hour.

Leaders from the INDIA opposition bloc urged the Election Commission (EC) on Sunday to ensure that on June 4, the postal ballots are counted and their results declared before the outcome of the EVMs is announced, and stressed that the poll panel should issue clear guidelines on the counting process and ensure that those are implemented.

They argue that the results of postal ballots should be declared first, in line with statutory rules. The EC had earlier mandated that all postal ballots be counted before EVM counting, but this rule was changed after the 2019 elections due to the increasing number of postal ballots.

Currently, the EC allows EVM counting to proceed regardless of the status of postal ballot counting. In the 2019 parliamentary elections, 22.71 lakh postal ballots were received, and this number is expected to be higher in the current election.

Counting Process and Oversight

The counting of votes is overseen by the Returning Officer appointed by the EC. The officer ensures that the process is conducted fairly. The EVMs are unsealed and votes are counted in the presence of representatives from all political parties.

The control units of the EVMs are used during the counting process. The results are displayed on a blackboard attached to each table. The control unit shows the number of votes each candidate received and the total number of candidates per constituency.

Ensuring Secrecy and Integrity

The EC has guidelines to ensure the secrecy and integrity of the counting process. This includes restrictions on the presence of unauthorized individuals. The counting is continuous without any interval.

VVPAT Slip Verification

The opposition leaders have also called for the counting of Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips to tally with the EVM results. However, the EC has rejected this demand.

Despite this, the Supreme Court has directed the EC to match VVPAT slips with EVM results in five randomly selected assembly constituencies.