KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is seeing a total of 596 candidates contesting for seats in the 73 constituencies in the upcoming state election.
Election Commission chairman Datuk Seri Ramlan Harun said of this number, 74 are independents, 73 are from Parti Warisan, 72 from Parti Impian Sabah, 55 are Gabungan Rakyat Sabah, 46 from Sabah STAR, 45 from Barisan, 42 from Perikatan, and 40 from Parti KDM.
A total of 25 are from Upko, 22 from Pakatan, 20 from Parti Kebangsaan Sabah, 17 from Parti Kerjasama Anak Negeri, 16 from Parti Perpaduan Rakyat Sabah, 14 from Bumi Kenyalang, seven from Parti Rumpun Sabah, six from SAPP, five each from Parti Damai Sabah and Perjuangan Rakyat, three each from Pertubuhan Gemilang Anak Sabah, Parti Bangsa Malaysia and Parti Aspirasi Rakyat Sarawak, and one each from Pejuang, Parti Bersatu Sasa Malaysia and Perpaduan.
"No nominations were rejected," he said, adding that 525 candidates are men and 71 are women.
Tulid is the seat with the most contenders at 14, followed by four seats with 13-cornered fights, two with 12-cornered fights, six with 11-cornered fights and nine areas with 10-cornered fights.
10 state seats have nine candidates each, while eight areas are facing eight-cornered fights. Ten areas have seven-cornered fights, 13 seats are six-cornered, followed by eight seats with five contenders and two with four-cornered fights.
A 24-year-old in Silam is listed as the youngest candidate while an 86-year-old in Bingkor is the oldest.
There are 205 candidates aged 60 and above, 178 between 50 and 59, 146 between 40 and 49, 59 between 30 and 39, and eight who are 29 and under.
According to the Election Commission, the campaign period will end at 11.59pm, Nov 28.
Candidates must pay deposits for their election campaign materials and are bound by local authority by-laws in the process of displaying and distributing such materials, which include photos of candidates, logos, party symbols and photos of party leaders.
Materials or words that instigate hate, bad intentions, racial and religious sentiments or anything that causes friction are not allowed in any campaign materials.
Information on the election can be found at www.spr.gov.my or the SPR website. Confusion or suspicious information can be checked via ukk@spr.gov.my.
