The chief poll officer of Himachal further said, "While the number of voters increased by 5.37 lakh, the number of votes polled increased by 4.33 lakh in this year's Assembly elections."
Congress sources said internal surveys indicate that the party is likely to get a majority in Himachal polls leading to increasing the number of contenders for the chief minister's post.
In a release on Monday, the state police said a total of 232 Flying Squads and an equal number of Static Surveillance Teams were deployed across the state to cut out threats of any untoward incidents, after the notification of the polling date.
In a viral image, polling officials are seen walking 15 kms in the snow for 6 hours to reach the polling station, which is situated at an altitude of 12,000 ft.
Himachal Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party chief Suresh Kashyap cast his vote in the ongoing Assembly elections on Saturday in the Pachhad seat in the Sirmaur district.
Congress has retained Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu who is the party's former state chief and who won in the 2017 Assembly election defeating BJP's Vijay Agnihotri. He is seen as one of the contenders for the top post of the Chief Minister in case Congress wins the Assembly polls.
The Dalhousie seat which comes under the Chamba district is set to witness a tough fight between the two parties with the Aam Aadmi Party trying to leave a mark in the elections.
Of the eight Assembly constituencies in Shimla district, Jubbal-Kotkhai recorded the highest turnout of 64.71 per cent till 3pm while Kasumpti logged 47 per cent.