The next delimitation will also be the moment at which the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (the Women’s Reservation Act) comes into force. 5 min read May 30, 2026 06:50 AM IST First published on: May 30, 2026 at 06:50 AM IST After the 2026 Census, the Lok Sabha could expand from 543 to 816 seats. Most of the discussion has focused on how the new seats will be distributed across states. We add a complementary question, drawing on our analysis of all the 2,171 parliamentary constituency (PC) elections held in India since 2009: How will delimitation affect voter participation? The 2024 general elections saw a turnout of 65.8 per cent — the second-highest of any Indian general election. However, urban turnout has been lagging. The fully built-up constituencies of Mumbai , Bengaluru , Hyderabad and the NCR are touching turnout floors of 55 to 60 per cent, well below the national average. The rural-urban turnout gap, 4.4 percentage points in 2009, has gone up to 11.6 points in 2024.…