Johor polls set for March 12, nomination on Feb 26
JOHOR POLLS | The Johor state election will take place on March 12, with early voting set for March 8, said Election Commission (EC) chairperson Abdul Ghani Salleh.
The nomination day is set for Feb 26, leading to a campaigning period of 14 days.
The electoral roll has been...
JOHOR POLLS | The Johor state election will take place on March 12, with early voting set for March 8, said Election Commission (EC) chairperson Abdul Ghani Salleh.
Nomination day is set for Feb 26, leading to a campaigning period of 14 days.
The electoral roll has been updated as of Jan 21, which will see a total of 2,597,742 individuals eligible to vote.
Ghani (above) said the EC has appointed 56 election officers with 186 assistants.
He added that an additional 56 campaign enforcement teams will be introduced to monitor campaign activities.
“For the purposes of monitoring campaign activities throughout the official campaign period, the EC will enact 56 campaign enforcement teams consisting of police officers, local authorities and the contesting candidates,” he told a press conference in Johor Bahru today.
Postal voters
Previous restrictions on postal voters have been abolished, allowing voters residing in southern Thailand, Singapore, Brunei and Kalimantan and Indonesia to vote in the upcoming election.
Those who have returned to Malaysia not less than 30 days within the span of five years of the dissolution of the state assembly will also be allowed to vote.
The EC has also extended the polling time by 30 minutes at polling centres, which will open for voters from 8am to 6pm.
In a statement later, Ghani said the Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) are currently being updated by the EC, Health Ministry and National Security Council. It will be announced at a later date.
The 56-seat Johor state assembly was dissolved on Jan 22 after incumbent Johor Menteri Besar Hasni Mohammad met with the monarch at Istana Bukit Serene in Johor Bahru.
The Johor government became fragile after the death of Kempas assemblyperson Osman Sapian which left Hasni with just a single majority in the state assembly.
Osman’s death left BN with 28 seats, comprising Umno (14 seats), MIC (two), Bersatu (11) and PAS (one), against Pakatan Harapan’s 27 seats namely DAP (14), PKR (seven) and Amanah (six).
Johor’s election marks the fourth state election during the Covid-19 pandemic and after the 2018 general election.
Traditionally, state elections are held simultaneously with parliamentary elections, except in the case of Sarawak.
However, BN has found that holding state elections can now be to their advantage.
The coalition returned to power following the Sabah election in 2020 and made a huge comeback during the Malacca election last year.
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