Nomination papers for contesting the local body elections in December began to be accepted from Thursday with the State Election Commission (SEC) issuing the election notification. As many as 72 nominations were filed in various parts of the State.
Nomination papers for contesting the elections can be filed till November 19. The scrutiny of papers will be held on November 20. November 23 is the last date for withdrawal of the nominations. As announced by the commission earlier, the elections will be held in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki districts on December 8; in Ernakulam, Kottayam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Wayanad on December 10; and Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasaragod districts on December 14.
As many as 21,865 wards in 1,199 local bodies will go to the polls in December. Votes will be counted on December 16 and the election process will be completed by December 23.
Earlier, the commission had decided to issue postal ballots to enable COVID-19 patients and persons in quarantine to cast their votes.
Meanwhile, local bodies scheduled for the elections have come under administrative committees from Thursday with the term of the elected councils ending on Wednesday.
