KUCHING: Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will contest all 82 constituencies in the coming Sarawak state election, with seat allocation to be discussed in detail later, says Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg.
The caretaker Sarawak Premier, who is also GPS chairman, said the coalition was ready to face the polls.
"We have just met the leaders of all the component parties where we formally announced that we will face the state election, although we do not know the dates yet, because that will be decided by the Election Commission (EC).
"But I can announce that GPS will contest all 82 seats. That is our decision," he told reporters after chairing the meeting at Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) headquarters here on Wednesday (Oct 28).
GPS comprises PBB, Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP), Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) and Progressive Democratic Party (PDP).
Abang Johari said the seats would be allocated among the component parties based on the winning candidates in the previous election.
"We will discuss the details later," he said, adding that further preparations would be discussed after the EC announces the nomination and polling dates.
He also confirmed that several incumbents from PBB will not seek reelection, but declined to reveal how many.
"Wait first, there is still time. The EC has not announced the dates yet."
Asked when GPS will announce its candidates, he quipped, "Before Nomination Day."
The Sarawak Legislative Assembly was dissolved on Monday (Oct 26), paving the way for the election which must be called within 60 days.
The EC will meet on Nov 6 to decide the key dates, including nomination and polling days.
In the last state election in 2021, GPS won 76 of the 82 seats, with PBB securing 47, SUPP 13, PRS 11 and PDP five.
Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) won four seats while DAP took the remaining two.
However, PSB's Batu Lintang assemblyman See Chee How quit the party in 2022 to become an Independent while the other three PSB representatives joined PDP in 2024 when their party was dissolved.
See reportedly applied to join SUPP on Tuesday (Oct 27), a day after the state assembly's dissolution.
