KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Deputy Chief Minister I Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam has been elected unopposed as president of the Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) for the 2026-2029 term.
PBS secretary-general Datuk Julita Mojungki said Dr Joachim was the sole candidate nominated for the party's top post after the nomination period closed on July 31.
"Under the party's election rules, a candidate must secure at least three nominations to qualify to contest,” she said in a statement.
Julita said Assistant Chief Minister Datuk Joniston Bangkuai was elected unopposed as deputy president for the non-Muslim Bumiputera quota, while Assistant Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Datuk Ruslan Muharram was elected unopposed as deputy president for the Muslim Bumiputera quota.
She said two candidates qualified to contest the deputy president’s post for the Chinese quota: Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Lo Su Fui and PBS Supreme Council member Goon Thien Shang.
For the vice-president's race, Julita said three candidates are contesting the two seats allocated to the non-Muslim Bumiputera quota, six candidates are vying for the two Muslim Bumiputera quota seats, while five candidates are contesting the single Chinese quota seat.
She said a total of 66 candidates will contest the 16 Supreme Council seats, comprising 28 candidates for the non-Muslim Bumiputera quota, 23 for the Muslim Bumiputera quota, and 15 for the Chinese quota.
Julita said the party received a record 79 nominations for all contested posts by the close of nominations on Friday (Aug 7), with more than half of the candidates being new faces.
The PBS Congress to finalise the party election results is scheduled to be held in September. — Bernama
