EC: 579 for parliament; 1,324 for state seats

The Election Commission received 579 nomination papers for the 222 parliamentary seats and 1,324 for the 505 state seats on nomination day today. Of the total, three nomination papers for state seats were rejected, while no papers for parliament seats were turned down during the one-hour nomination process which started at 9am. EC secretary Datuk Kamaruddin Mohamed Baria said the nomination papers were not accepted by the returning officers as the people who came to file the papers were found to be not eligible under the election rules and regulations. Kamaruddin, however, did not disclose the state seats. He said no contestant won unopposed for parliament and state seats and no candidate withdrew from contesting until nomination period closed at 10am. Kamaruddin said 132 parliament seats are locked in straight fights, 57 three-cornered battles, 24 four-way fights, seven seats are facing five-way tussles, one six-way fight and one seven-way battle. He said 320 state seats are facing straight fights, 107 (three-cornered), 42 (four-way), 25 (five-way), 10 (six-way) and one (seven-way). Of the 579 parliamentary candidates, 221 are from Barisan Nasional (BN), 73 (PAS), 99 (PKR), 51 (DAP), 28 (State Reform Party-STAR), 8 (Sabah Progressive Party-SAPP), 9 (Barisan Jemaah Islamiah Se-Malaysia-Berjasa), 2 (Parti Kesejahteraan Intan Tanah Air-KITA), 1 (Parti Bersatu Sasa Malaysia-Bersama), 2 (Parti Cinta Malaysia-PCM), 6 (Parti Pekerja Sarawak-SWP) and 79 (independents). Of the 1,321 state seat aspirants, 505 are from BN, 236 (PAS), 172 (PKR), 102 (DAP), 49 (STAR), 41 (SAPP), 5 (Berjasa), 11 (KITA), 4 (Bersama), 3 (PCM), 2 (Parti Sosialis Malaysia-PSM) and 191 independents. A total of 523 contestants vying for parliament seats are men, 56 women while 1,209 state seat aspirants are men and 112 are women, he said. Kamaruddin said eight parliamentary candidates are aged between 21 and 29, 77 (30-39 years), 145 (40-49 years), 223 (50-59 years) and 126 (60 and above). For state seats, 26 contestants are aged 21-29, 176 (30-39 years), 455 (40-49 years), 492 (50-59 years) and 172 (above 60 years), he said. He said there was one candidate in Melaka who is vying for a parliament seat on a DAP ticket but contesting for a state seat as an independent. Kamaruddin said the EC was satisfied with the conduct of the nomination process today. "Throughout the nomination period, the EC did not receive any reports and no untoward incidents occurred that could disrupt the nomination process in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak. "Hence, the EC has concluded that the nomination process proceeded smoothly. The commission wish to thank all parties involved in the nomination process for ensuring the nomination was peaceful and calm," he added.