A total of 6,976 candidates are contesting 2,081 seats in this phase, including 1,693 candidates vying for 293 zila parishad wards and 5,283 in the fray for 1,788 panchayat samiti wards.
The first phase is being held in Ajmer, Alwar, Barmer, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Dungarpur, Jaipur, Jhalawar, Jodhpur, Kota, Nagaur, Pali, Phalodi, Rajsamand, Sirohi and Udaipur districts. (Representational image)
Jaipur,Oct 22, 2026 10:04 IST
Polling began at 7 am on Thursday in the first phase of Rajasthan’s three-phase Panchayati Raj elections, with more than 85 lakh voters eligible to elect representatives to 16 zila parishads and 104 panchayat samitis across 16 districts.
A total of 6,976 candidates are contesting 2,081 seats in this phase, including 293 zila parishad wards and 1,788 panchayat samiti wards. Of these, 1,693 candidates are in the fray for zila parishad seats, while 5,283 are contesting panchayat samiti seats.
The first phase is being held in Ajmer, Alwar, Barmer, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Dungarpur, Jaipur, Jhalawar, Jodhpur, Kota, Nagaur, Pali, Phalodi, Rajsamand, Sirohi and Udaipur districts. A total of 85,07,306 voters are eligible to cast their ballots.
Among the zila parishads, Bhilwara has the highest number of wards at 28, followed by Udaipur with 25, Barmer with 24 and Jaipur with 22.
Jaipur has the highest number of candidates contesting zila parishad seats at 154, followed by Bikaner with 138. Alwar and Jodhpur have 133 candidates each.
In the panchayat samiti elections, Nagaur has the highest number of candidates at 470, followed by Barmer with 467 and Bhilwara with 466.
The elections are being held in three phases for 41 zila parishads and 457 panchayat samitis, besides elections for panches and sarpanches in 14,403 gram panchayats.
The second phase of polling for zila parishad and panchayat samiti members is scheduled for October 28, while the third phase will be held on November 3.
Elections for panches and sarpanches in the third phase are scheduled for November 5, followed by indirect elections for up-sarpanches on November 6.
- Ends