Voting for the ninth and final phase of the Jammu and Kashmir panchayat polls took place between 8 am and 2 pm on Tuesday.

The voting was held at 452 polling stations, all in the Kashmir division, Kashmir Reader reported. State Chief Electoral Officer Shaleen Kabra said 430 candidates were in the fray for 55 sarpanch and 138 panch seats. As many as 68 sarpanchs and 433 panchs have already been elected unopposed, he added. Kabra said 346 polling stations have been categorised as “hypersensitive”.

Around 79.7% of the voters turned up for the eighth phase of the polls on Saturday. The turnout was 49.6% in Kashmir region and 85.1% in Jammu region.

At the end of seven phases of the panchayat polls, the state had recorded an overall voter turnout of 73.8%, with 44.4% in the Kashmir division and 83.2% in Jammu. The nine-phase elections began on November 17.