JOHOR BARU – As the counting of votes progresses for both the Pulai parliamentary and Simpang Jeram state elections, the latest count reveals Pakatan Harapan (PH) leading in both seats.
Unofficial results indicate that PH has gained early leads, with results expected after 8.30pm.
Election Commission (EC) chairman Tan Sri Abdul Ghani Salleh had earlier said counting is expected to be completed by as early as 8.30pm.
The unofficial voter turnout for the by-elections as of 6pm was reported at 46.8% for Pulai and 60.2% for Simpang Jeram.
Ghani had said the unfavourable weather condition was to blame for the voter turnout, preventing a number of voters from making their way to the polling stations.
There were a total of 47 polling centres with 294 streams in the Pulai parliamentary constituency while the Simpang Jeram state seat has 14 centres with 68 streams.
Pulai has 166,653 registered voters, while there are 40,488 registered voters in Simpang Jeram.
In Pulai, Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Suhaizan Kaiat is facing Zulkifli Jaafar of Perikatan Nasional (PN) and independent Samsudin Mohamad Fauzi.
In Simpang Jeram, PH’s Nazri Abdul Rahman is taking Dr Mohd Mazri Yahya of PN and independent S. Jeganathan.
The two by-elections were held following the death of Amanah deputy president Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub on July 23.
Salahuddin had won Pulai with a majority of 33,174 votes and Simpang Jeram with a 2,399-vote majority. – The Vibes, September 9, 2023
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