The Malaysian Insight

VOTING for the Port Dickson parliamentary by-election closed at 5.30pm with voter turnout falling short of the 70% targeted by the Election Commission.

Voter turnout stood at 54% at 4pm. However, this was higher than the turnout recorded in the three by-elections held after the May general election.

In the Sg Kandis state seat by-election, the turnout was 49.4%. The two by-elections which followed had a much smaller turnout, 43% in Balakong and 44% in Seri Setia.

There are 68,317 registered voters in Port Dickson, of which 43% are Malay, followed by Chinese (33%), Indian (22%) and others (2%).

While the weather was expected to be wet in the later part of the day, it only drizzled in parts of Port Dickson, especially in the Chuah and Lukut areas.

The by-election was called following the resignation of its PKR MP, Danyal Balagopal Abdullah, on September 12.

Danyal vacated the seat so PKR president-elect Anwar Ibrahim could contest in the seat and make his comeback in Parliament.

Others contestants are PAS’ Mohd Nazari Mokhtar and five independent candidates – former Negri Sembilan menteri mesar Isa Samad, Anwar’s former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, social media personality Stevie Chan, former lecturer Lau Seck Yan and consultant Kan Chee Yuen.

Of them, Isa is expected to be the closest challenge to Anwar, who remains the favourite to win the seat. Of all the candidates, only Isa is a local voter.

In the 14th general election, Danyal won the seat with a majority of 17,710 votes, defeating Barisan Nasional’s VS Mogan and PAS’ Mahfuz Roslan.

This seat, previously known as Teluk Kemang, used to be an MIC stronghold, but it lost the seat to PKR in 2008 and in the following two general elections.

Early voting on October 9 involved 7,191 members of the armed forces, who cast their ballots at three voting centres with 13 streams.

Results are expected to be announced by 10pm. – October 13, 2018.