Khulna has witnessed a surge of 24,860 voters compared to the past year, totalling 2,058,293 voters, according to a draft voter list published by the Election Commission (EC).

The EC made it public on January 2, showing 1,033,447 male and 1,024,827 female voters respectively.

Moreover, the list includes 19 transgender voters in the district consisting of nine upazilas and seven police stations.

The draft list shows the highest 3,081 voters increased in Dumuria upazila, totalling 2,76,395 voters.

In Sadar, the number of voters went up by 2,253 to reach 186,326.

In Koyra, there has been a slight increase in male voters compared to female voters, with a total of 2,192 new voters, standing at 182,973 in total.

Sonadanga Police Station sees an increase of 1,714 voters, totalling 139,140 voters; Khalishpur Police Station, where voter numbers have grown by 1,563, reaching 129,885; and Phultala, where an increase of 1,575 voters brings the total number to 122,117.

Voter numbers in Paikgachha, Batiaghata, Dakop, Rupsa, Terokhada, and Dighalia have also seen steady increases, with some areas such as Paikgachha registering a rise of 2,191 voters, bringing the total voter count to 234,062.

In Daulatpur, 1,193 new voters have been added, raising the total voters to 87,527.

Sources at the district election office said that after the central publication of the draft list, the field offices of the EC made the updated lists.

Following this, people can file claims, objections, or requests for corrections at the concerned upazilas by January 17 and their applications will be resolved by January 30. The final voter list will be published on March 2.

According to district election officials, the process for finalising the voter list will continue until March 2. The EC is also considering collecting citizen data for voter list updates through door-to-door visits starting January 20, although a final decision on this plan is yet to be made.

The last year's previous voter list had a total of 2,033,433 voters in Khulna, including 1,019,364 male, 1,014,052 female voters, and 17 transgender ones.

Khulna District Election Officer Farazi Benjire Ahmed told UNB that the draft voter list has already been published and the process of collecting citizen data for voter list updates will begin on January 20.