Voting started at 8 am and will continue until 4 pm without any break.
Electronic voting machines (EVMs) will be used in 29 municipalities, while traditional ballot papers in the remaining 26 municipalities in the 4th phase polls, said SM Asaduzzaman, the director (public relations) at the Election Commission Secretariat.
There are some 83 lakh (832,428) under 793 polling stations in the 55 municipalities.
In the election, 55 mayors, 167 women councillors from the reserved seats, and 501 general councillors will be elected.
A total of 217 mayoral candidates, 618 women councillor contestants, and 2070 general councillor contenders are in the electoral race.
On January 3, the Election Commission announced the election schedule for 56 bodies in the 4th phase municipal polls.
Of the 56 municipalities, polls to Natore and Kalkini of Madaripur were postponed at the orders of the court and the Election Commission respectively, while the candidates in all posts of Parshuram of Feni were elected unopposed, finding no single contender against each post there.
But later two more municipalities – Sonaimuri of Noakhali and Trishal of Mymensingh—were in incorporated in the 4th phase election.
The election to 24 municipalities was held on December 28, 60 municipalities on January 16 and 62 municipalities on January 30.
The fifth phase election to 31 municipalities is scheduled to be held on February 28.
