Turnout trends show urban voter apathy in Jubilee Hills despite growth in electorate

Despite a sharp increase in voter enrolment over the years, Hyderabad’s Jubilee Hills constituency continues to record low voter turnout. Analysts cite urban apathy, floating population and weak mobilisation as reasons ahead of the November 11 bypoll

Hyderabad: Despite a steady rise in the number of registered voters over the past 16 years, the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency has continued to show a pattern of low voter turnout, remaining a challenge for both political parties and election authorities. One of Hyderabad’s most high-profile and urban segments, the constituency has a diverse mix of both poor and affluent voters.

An analysis of polling data shows that the voter base in Jubilee Hills grew from 2.59 lakh in 2009 to 3.85 lakh in 2023 and nearly 4 lakh in the latest revision of electoral rolls in September 2025. However, the voting percentage has remained stagnant and even dipped sharply at times, indicating a widening gap between voter enrolment and participation.

 

Following delimitation in 2009, the Jubilee Hills constituency was carved out of the then Khairatabad constituency. In the 2009 Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections, the constituency recorded a 52.76 per cent voter turnout. After the formation of Telangana, turnout dropped to 50.18 per cent in 2014 and further declined to 45.59 per cent in 2018, the lowest among the State’s urban segments. The 2023 Assembly elections saw a marginal rise to 47.58 per cent, still well below the State average.

Parliamentary election trends showed a similar pattern. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the segment registered just 39.4 per cent voting, which rose modestly to 45.38 per cent in 2024, again reflecting limited voter enthusiasm despite high-profile campaigns. As for parties that managed to win despite the low turnout, the first election in 2009 saw P Vishnuvardhan Reddy, now with the BRS and then with the Congress, emerge victorious. Thereafter, it was Maganti Gopinath for the next three terms, with the first time in 2014 being with the Telugu Desam Party, and the last two, with the Bharat Rashtra Samithi.

Political observers said Jubilee Hills reflected the broader urban apathy seen in upscale and cosmopolitan constituencies, where issues such as civic amenities, traffic, and governance often dominate discussions but rarely translate into active voter participation. They also pointed to the large floating population, high-income demographics, and weekend travel as factors behind low turnouts.

With the upcoming Jubilee Hills bypoll on November 11, political parties are facing the challenge of mobilising passive urban voters. The bypoll result could depend not only on party strength but also on how effectively candidates can motivate residents to step out and vote in larger numbers. Accordingly, all political parties have been repeatedly appealing to voters to exercise their franchise.