General Elections, April-June 2024

heatwave, March-June 2024 

A deadly heatwave swept across India in the pre-monsoon season between March and June 2024, initially spreading over the Western states before eventually reaching the Northern parts of the country (Aljazeera 2024). Many places reported record-high temperatures, including the capital of Delhi which reported temperatures as high as 52.9 degrees Celsius (Adil 2024). According to World Weather Attribution, “human-induced climate change” impacted these events, making them “30 times more likely and much hotter.” In correlation with the increased temperatures, there was a steep increase in the use of air conditioning and refrigeration. As a result, on 29 May 2024, India’s electric grid reached a record load of 246 million kilowatts and 250 million kilowatts on 30 May 2024. These numbers demonstrated the grid's best performance in 2 years as the grid generated enough power to keep air conditioners functioning throughout the heatwave and prevented any blackouts during the elections (Kemp, 2024).  

Impact on electoral processes 

The general elections were held in India between April and June 2024. The campaigning was impacted by the heatwave with parties having to shift campaign efforts to early mornings/evenings (Aljazeera 2024). “It’s unbearable heat. It has become extremely difficult to campaign under a blazing sun,’’ said Rabindra Narayan Behera, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) candidate for the Jajpur constituency in Odisha (Aljazeera 2024). As the electoral process continued, the heatwave claimed several lives. For example, at least 33 poll workers died in a single day in India’s most populous state of Uttar Pardesh (Mitra 2024). Additionally, in Bihar, 10 polling personnel died from heatstroke, while 3 other election officials died in Rohtas (Mizapur & Panta, 2024). This led to dissatisfaction amongst poll workers about the level of care provided by the Election Commission (Tripathi 2024). 

According to some politician's the heatwave may have also had an impact on voter turnout. According to Defence Minister Ranjath Singh, the high temperatures were partly to blame for the low voter turnout in the first four phases in the election (Aljazeera 2024). Roads Minister Nitin Gadkari fainted while giving a speech during a campaign for the re-election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. According to the Roads Minister the heat from the heatwave induced his brief loss of consciousness (Agence France Presse). Moreover, in a formal address Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared the heat wave was “likely to continue in parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh” (New Delhi, 2024). Polling stations were reported to be empty on the second last day of counting in Delhi (Mitra 2024). The exact impact on voter turnout is difficult to measure, however, as competing projections are still estimations.  

Changes in procedures  

The National Disaster Management Authority issued a list of Do’s and Don’ts for the population, focusing on both how to avoid heatstroke and also how to treat the incidence of heatstroke. The Electoral Commission of India also issued regulations to address the impacts of the heatwave at polling stations. These included policies mandating the provision of drinking water, shade, and medical kits at polling stations (EIC 2024). In some polling stations, such as those in Delhi, mist fans and air coolers were also provided. While air conditioners require outside ventilation to function, air coolers filter preexisting warm air to extract cool air. The lack of intricate components like gas or a ventilation system allows for the easy transport and accessibility of air coolers (ProBreez, n.d.).  Provisions were made to collect votes from senior citizens and differently-abled persons (Kunal 2024). This was done through a vote-from-home service (mobile ballot box voting) run by the EIC for individuals aged over 85 and those with over 40% benchmark disability (PIB 2024). Once voting ended, The chief election commissioner stated that the main lesson was to have elections before the summer (Context 2024).