First polls to Rangpur City Corporation tomorrow

Voters will pick their representatives in the maiden election to Rangpur City Corporation (RCC) tomorrow.
The electioneering ended at midnight yesterday. A total of 3, 57,742 voters will elect a mayor and 44 councillors to the corporation. Among the councillor posts, 11 are reserved for women.
Twelve candidates are contesting for the mayoral post, while 418 are vying to become councillors in 33 wards.
The leading mayoral hopefuls are former organising secretary of Jatiya Party (JP) central committee AKM Abdur Rauf Manik and former Rangpur Sadar upazila chairman Mostafizar Rahman Mostafa. Manik was also a mayor of the erstwhile Rangpur Municipality.
The JP had initially picked former lawmaker Moshiur Rahman Ranga as its mayoral favourite. The decision triggered an intra-party rift, which led to the withdrawal of candidature by Moshiur.
Party Chairman HM Ershad later expelled its leaders Manik and Mostafa from the party and decided not to back any candidate for the mayoral post.
The ruling Awami League has not named any mayoral favourite, while the main opposition BNP and its key ally Jamaat-e-Islami have not backed any candidate in the election.
Md Monirul Islam, returning officer of the RCC polls, said 1,070 polling booths will be set up at 178 polling centres in the city.
Electronic voting machines will be used in four polling centres of ward no 11, he added.