Live updates on the 2023 Madhya Pradesh Assembly election results: The Election Commission has initiated the announcement of winners. Early indications point towards the BJP making a significant return in the state. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, former CM Kamal Nath, and BJP General Secretary Kailash Vijaywargiya are among the prominent figures leading in their respective constituencies.

Counting for the 230-member Madhya Pradesh Assembly commenced this Sunday morning, confirmed an election official. The process commenced at 8 am, with the initial half-hour dedicated to counting postal ballots, according to the official. State Chief Electoral Officer Anupam Rajan mentioned that the single-phase elections held on November 17 achieved an impressive voter turnout of 77.82%, surpassing the 2018 figure of 75.63%. Last month's elections witnessed 77.15% polling through electronic voting machines (EVMs), with the remaining percentage accounted for by postal ballots.

The ruling BJP, with a stronghold in the state over the last two decades, faces stiff competition from the Congress. A total of 2,533 candidates contested across 230 constituencies in the state. The counting process for all Assembly seats commenced at 8 am across 52 district headquarters under tight security measures.

Anupam Rajan further elaborated that 692 tables were allocated for the postal ballot count in all districts, while 4,369 tables were designated for the placement of EVMs. He specified that the postal ballots would be tallied between 8 am and 8:30 am, followed by the commencement of EVM vote counting in the presence of officials and authorized representatives from political parties. Once the postal ballots are tabulated, the results will be announced candidate-wise by the respective officials. This procedure will continue after each round of counting.

The Jhabua constituency, comprising 26 rounds of counting, holds the record for the highest count, while the Sevda constituency in Datia district will undergo the lowest count of 12 rounds, as informed by Rajan.

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