Vote counting has started at different centres in Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal city corporations Saturday afternoon.
Beginning at 8:00am simultaneously, voting continued for eight hours without any break with thousands of people exercising their franchise in the four city corporations.
In Barisal and Khulna, voting ended around 4:00pm.
However, many people were waiting in the queue in front of polling centres to cast their votes in Sylhet and Rajshahi when this report was filed.
In Barisal city, many voters cast their votes defying rain.
No major violence was reported from anywhere in the four cities.
The voters came out in their scores long before the voting began. Men, women and elderly people — all marched towards the polling centres as a festive mood descended in the four city corporations.
By 8:00am, when the voting began simultaneously in the four corporations, hundreds of people were already queuing up in front of the polling centres to cast votes.
Apart from the city mayors, they also voted to elect 157 councillors to run their cities for the next five years.
Though the campaign ended Thursday, both of the Awami League and BNP-backed mayor candidates conducted campaigns in different areas in Barisal city till Friday midnight breaching the electoral code of conduct, reported our correspondents covering the event.
RAJSHAHI
The 18-party-backed mayoral candidate, Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul, reached the Satellite Town High School centre to cast his vote at 8:45am while Awami League candidate Khairuzzaman Liton reached there 10 minutes later, reports our Rajshahi correspondent.
Three candidates are contesting for the mayor post of the Rajshahi City Corporation.
Of them, Bulbul and Liton appear to be the frontrunners.
A number of 137 polling stations have been set up for 2,86,917 voters. Of the centres, 104 have been considered vulnerable.
A total of 155 candidates are vying for 30 councillor posts while 66 for 10 councillor posts (reserved) in the Rajshahi city corporation.
BARISAL
People thronged the polling stations in groups amid rain to cast votes for their favourite candidates.
AL-led 14-party-backed candidate Shawkat Hossain Hiron, meantime, cast his vote at Nuria High School around 8:30am.
Talking to newsmen, Hiron expressed his optimism to be elected to serve the city corporation as its mayor.
Like in other city corporations, three candidates are vying for the mayoral post in the Barisal City Corporation.
Hiron and BNP backed candidate Ahsan Habib Kamal appear to be the favourite ones.
One hundred polling stations have been set up for 2,11,257 voters in Barisal City Corporation. Of the centres, 60 have been considered as vulnerable.
A total of 116 candidates are vying for 30 councillor posts while 45 for 10 councillor posts (reserved) in the city corporation.
KHULNA
Like Rajshahi, three candidates are vying for the key post in the Khulna City Corporation election where close contest is expected between AL-backed candidate Talukdar Abdul Khaleque and BNP-backed candidate Moniruzzaman Mony.
A number of 288 polling stations have been established for 4,40,556 voters in the city corporation.
A total of 137 candidates are vying for 31 councillor posts while 45 for 10 councillor posts (reserved) in the Khulna City Corporation.
SYLHET
Awami League-led 14-party alliance has backed Badar Uddin Ahmed Kamran and BNP-led 18-party opposition alliance has lent its support to Ariful Haque Chowdhury for the mayoral post of Sylhet City Corporation.
A number of 127 polling stations have been set up for 2,91,046 voters. Of the centres, 62 have been considered as vulnerable.
Three candidates are vying for the mayoral post, 139 for 27 councillor posts while 35 for the councillor posts (reserved) in the Sylhet City Corporation.
