SBI Research: Women Voter Turnout Surges to 1.8 Crore in 2024

The turnout among women voters in India surged to ₹1.8 crore in 2024 as compared to 2019. The increase can be attributed to implementation of women-centric schemes, SBI research said.

Of the 1.8 crore women voters, 45 lakh can be attributed to a surge in literacy, while 36 lakh came up as a result of implementation of Mudra Yojana. House Ownership under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and improvement in sanitation contributed to an increase of 20 lakh and 21 lakh respectively, researchers of SBI’s economic research department (ERD) showed.

Analysts at SBI’s economic research department (ERD) suggested implementing a robust absentee voting system.

Absentee voting system facilitates a person to exercise his right to vote via postal voting, early voting, proxy voting or electronic voting options

The research is based on data compiled by the Election Commission.

ERD said, “While more than 9 crore more voters cast their votes in last decade, 58 per cent of them are female voters (~5.3 crore). Overall turnout ratio has increased significantly in SC/ST category (particularly in the case of females), again indicating the empowerment of those at bottom of pyramid.”

Of the 19 states, which implemented women centric schemes, average women voter turnout surged by 7.8 lakh as compared to a surge of 2.5 lakh in states where no such schemes were launched in 2019.