Gujarat Assembly Elections phase 2 polling LIVE: Fate of 851 candidates in north & central Gujarat to be decided

New Delhi/Ahmedabad: The voting for second and final phase of Gujarat Assembly elections 2017 began at 8am on Thursday, in which 851 candidates, spread across 14 districts in north and central Gujarat, will test their luck. The voting would end at 5 pm, and in total 2 crore 22 lakh voters will exercise their constitutional right. BJP veterans like Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah will also cast their votes in the second phase of polling. Prominent candidates in second phase polling of Gujarat Assembly elections 2017 Prominent candidates in the fray for today's battle include state deputy chief minister Nitin Patel, who is contesting from Mehsana against Jivabhai Patel of Congress. Alpesh Thakor, who joined the Congress, is seeking election from Radhanpur constituency. Lavingji Thakor of the BJP is contesting against him. Vadgam SC seat is another key constituency from where independent candidate Jignesh Mevani is fighting the election on Congress support against BJP's Vijay Chakravarti. In Maninagar, the constituency once represented by PM Modi, Congress has given ticket to foreign-educated young face Sweta Bhrambhatt against BJP's sitting MLA Suresh Patel. Modi had vacated the constituency after becoming the PM in 2014. Counting of votes will take place on December 18. X factor in Gujarat Assembly elections 2017 The influential Patidar community, which accounts for around 12 per cent of the state's population, could prove to be the 'X factor' in the polls, in which Hardik Patel has pledged support to the Congress and appealed to the people to "uproot the BJP" this time. Gujarat Assembly elections 2017, a precursor of 2019 Lok Sabha polls The elections, being viewed as precursor to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, are a prestige battle for Modi, who helmed the campaign for the ruling BJP in his home state, and a litmus test for Gandhi, who spearheaded the campaign for the Congress. In the 2012 assembly polls, the BJP had won 115 seats, while the Congress bagged 61. The counting of votes will be taken up on December 18. (With PTI inputs)