THE Election Commission (EC) has issued 22,881 postal ballots to all eligible postal voters for Sabah’s 17th State Election, with distribution carried out on 17 and 18 November across all 73 state constituencies.
EC Secretary Datuk Khairul Shahril Idrus said the ballots were dispatched by appointed postal voting officers and cover several categories of eligible voters. He confirmed that 21,362 ballots were issued under Category 1A, which includes election workers, SPR members and officers, police and military personnel, and accredited media practitioners.
A further 336 ballots were allocated under Category 1B for Malaysians residing overseas, while 1,183 ballots fall under Category 1C, involving personnel from key agencies and organisations such as the Royal Malaysia Police Volunteer Reserve, Fire and Rescue Department, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, Malaysian Prisons Department and Ministry of Health.
“Category C also includes the Immigration Department, Civil Defence Force, National Disaster Management Agency, National Registration Department officers stationed at UTCs, and staff of Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd,” he said in a statement.
Khairul Shahril added that the issuing of postal ballots was witnessed by agents representing political parties or contesting candidates to ensure full transparency.
He reminded all postal voters to mark their ballots and complete the Identity Declaration Form (Form 2) correctly before returning them to their respective Returning Officers no later than 5pm on polling day, 29 November.
“Voters are also advised to safeguard the secrecy of their vote by refraining from recording or sharing images of their postal ballots on social media,” he said.
According to EC statistics, a total of 1,784,843 voters are eligible to cast their ballots in this state election. This includes 1,760,417 ordinary voters, 11,697 military personnel and spouses, and 12,729 police personnel and spouses. - November 19, 2025
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