By Lian Cheng
BINTULU, Nov 4: As expected, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) candidate Iskandar Turkee has successfully defended Jepak for the ruling coalition in the by-election with a majority of 8,784 in a three-cornered fight.
He garnered a total of 9,638 votes.
Being underdogs, Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) candidate Stevenson Jospeh Sumbang and Chieng Lea Phing from Sarawak People’s Aspiration Party (Aspirasi) polled 854 and 431 votes, respectively.
Polling started as early as 7.30am this morning with various voting centres closing at different times, the latest being 5.30pm.
Voter turnout rate was low at 48.57 per cent, which was not surprising as since the opening of various voting centres this morning, the hourly figures released by the Election Commission had not been encouraging.
Later in the day, instead of a rise in the turnout rates, the numbers started to dribble. As of 4pm, only 45.44 per cent voters turned up to exercise their democratic rights.
N67 Jepak has a total of 22,761 registered voters.
The Jepak seat became vacant following the passing of its six-term incumbent, Datuk Talib Zulpilip, who had held the seat since 1996 and passed away on Sept 15, 2023, at the age of 72 due to health complications.
During the 2021 Sarawak Election, Talib managed to garner 6,277 votes, defeating Dr Raba’ah Tudin of Parti Sarawak Bersatu who polled 2,034 votes, Stevenson’s 587 and independent candidate Tuah Kazan’s 141 votes.
Since nomination, GPS has aimed for “a big majority” and the final result showed the ruling coalition achieved their initial target, compared to Talib’s majority of 4,243 in the 2021 Sarawak Election. — DayakDaily
