First-time voters excited to step into polling booth

One button, one inked finger, and suddenly they are part of a conversation they had only listened to until now.

A six-hour journey from Mangaluru to Kozhikode did not stop Niya Fathima from casting her first vote on Thursday. The 20-year-old arrived just in time for polling day, laughing about how grown-up the whole thing felt.

With curiosity and a firm plan to flaunt her inked finger, Ms. Fathima says the excitement of finally stepping into a booth is something she has been waiting to share with her friends. “It’s giving very Spider-Man vibes, you know, ‘with great power comes great responsibility’,” she jokes. For Ms. Fathima, her first vote is less pressure and more thrill.

“I am curious to know what actually happens inside the polling booths,” says Amrik Prakash V.P., a second-year BCA student in Kozhikode. As a first-time voter eager to cast his ballot, Mr. Amrik says he feels a simple thrill in stepping in, pressing a button, and being part of democracy.

Aysha Dhiya, another first-time voter in the Kannur Corporation, describes her mindset as “confused more than anything else.” Last year, she missed voting as she had been away from her hometown. And now, living in Bengaluru, Ms. Dhiya feels distant from the candidates who will appear on her ballot.

“I have only seen their faces. I do not know how efficient they are,” Ms. Dhiya says, adding that she has spent the past week reading manifestos and scrolling through political news, looking for candidates who address issues her family often talks about.

A more measured perspective comes from Megha N., 23, a second-year BEd student from Peralassery, who had consciously stayed away from voting until now. Although elections in her locality were always loud and active, she chose to remain on the sidelines.

“I used to step back because I believed my decision should come from within,” Ms. Megha says, adding that she had avoided voting earlier to ensure her choice wasn’t shaped by others. This year, she finally feels ready. As for excitement, she laughs and adds, “No excitement, because it is a conscious decision.”