Sarawak PKR, which will be contesting mostly Dayak-majority seats in the coming elections, says it does not expect to field candidates to compete with coalition partner DAP in more than two seats.

State PKR leader Baru Bian said the party would be contesting 40 seats in total.

"The majority of the 40 seats is quite confirmed. I think the clash is in one or two seats. Very negligible numbers," Baru told reporters in Kuching today.

He added the state PKR would announce its candidates a few days before next Monday, the nomination day.

On Friday, Baru announced that he would veto the agreement set by the Pakatan Harapan presidential council last Monday, and said the state party may contest seats overlapping with DAP's candidates.

Sarawak DAP said it would proceed to contest the 29 seats it agreed with PKR's national leadership.

It contested 15 seats in 2011 state election, compared to 49 by PKR, winning 12 seats. Prior to the state assembly's dissolution, PKR controlled three seats.

Baru confirmed that he would be defending his seat against his relative, BN's candidate for Ba'Kelalan, Willie Liau.

"We are related. That is not exceptional in Ba'Kelalan, where we are all related to one another. It is just a political fight. Family is still family. it doesn't matter and I hope they would understand that as well."

"I believe Willie is the best person to put up by the BN because out of the eight people, they chose Willie. I leave it to the voters of Bakelala. I'm sure that are mature enough, politically.

Baru defeated Willie, a nephew, in the 2011 elections with a 473 majority. Both men are lawyers by trade. Baru is the son of the local pastor.

"Whatever the final outcome is, we have directed all our candidates to move. At the end of the day it is the aspirations of the people that matters most," Baru said.

The Election Commission (EC) did not release the racial and religious demographics of the state constituencies for this coming election.

By the opposition party's count, there is now an estimated 200 Chinese, and an equal number of Malays in Ba'Kelalan, after its boundaries were re-delineated in 2014.

There are now less than 20 Iban voters in the constituency while some 600 Lun Banwang voters were shifted to the newly-created seat of Mulu, the party added.

There are 7,375 registered voters in Ba'Kelalan, according to the EC. Mulu has 8,600 registered voters.