NOMINATIONS for the Sabah state election have been set for November 15, while polling will take place on November 29, the Election Commission (EC) announced today.
EC chairman Datuk Seri Ramlan Harun said early voting for the 17th Sabah Election will be conducted on November 25.
He said the EC had received formal notification from the Speaker of the Sabah State Legislative Assembly on the dissolution of the 16th assembly by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor on October 6, paving the way for the election to fill 73 state seats.
“With this, the EC has held a special meeting today and decided to hold the state election to fill the 73 vacant assembly seats,” Ramlan said during a press conference in Kota Kinabalu.
“The EC has set several key dates — Nomination Day on November 15, Early Voting on November 25, and Polling Day on November 29,” he added.
The 14-day campaign period will begin immediately after nomination day and run until 11.59pm on November 28.
Ramlan also announced the appointment of 25 returning officers and 196 assistant returning officers, assisted by 86 Election Campaign Enforcement Teams (PP-KPR) comprising officers from the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM), local authorities (PBT), and representatives of contesting candidates.
A total of 33,002 election workers will be deployed across the state, covering 940 polling centres — including 882 ordinary polling stations and 58 early-voting centres — with 3,645 polling streams in total. The EC has allocated RM116.8 million to conduct the election.
The latest electoral roll, updated up to August 2025, contains 1,784,843 registered voters, comprising 1.76 million ordinary voters, 11,697 military personnel and spouses, and 12,729 police and General Operations Force (PGA) personnel and their spouses.
Applications for domestic and overseas postal voting opened on October 13, with the EC setting October 21 as the deadline for Malaysians abroad and agency-based voters, while November 12 is the closing date for election workers, security personnel, and media staff. Applications must be submitted online through www.spr.gov.my.
The EC will also run its voter outreach campaign “Jom Kita Undi” (Let’s Vote) to encourage turnout, while continuing its live-streaming coverage of polling processes via its official Facebook page.
The Sabah State Legislative Assembly was dissolved by Hajiji on October 6 at Menara Kinabalu in Kota Kinabalu, an event attended by assemblymen from Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) and Pakatan Harapan (PH).
The dissolution came just weeks before the assembly would have completed its five-year term, marking the end of a period defined by record state revenues but persistent challenges including infrastructure failures, corruption scandals, poverty, and unemployment.
Sabah continues to struggle with water shortages, poor road conditions, and frequent power outages that have disrupted daily life across the state.
Several civil groups and lawmakers have also called on the EC to allow postal voting for Sabahans living outside the state and to consider weekday polling, saying weekend elections could limit participation.
Groups such as Bersih and Tindak Malaysia said many Sabahans working or studying in Peninsular Malaysia face high travel costs and time constraints to return home to vote.
Tuaran MP Wilfred Madius Tangau had urged the EC to hold polling on a weekday in respect of Friday prayers for Muslims and other religious observances over the weekend.
However, the EC confirmed that polling will take place on Saturday, November 29. - October 16, 2025
