79.78 per cent cast votes in Kuala Besut

A total of 14,108 voters or 79.78 per cent have cast their votes in the Kuala Besut state by-election, today. The electors included 911 advance voters, said the Election Commission (EC). All eight polling centres on the mainland were opened from 8pm to 5pm while another in Pulau Perhentian, which closed at 3pm, recorded 635 voters or 86.6 per cent. The percentage of voter turnout meets the EC's target of between 75 and 80 per cent. Polling went on smoothly under the watchful eyes of the police with the turnout registering 15 per cent in the first hour and doubled by 10 am and gradually reached 50 per cent in the afternoon. Sunny weather contributed to the high voter turnout even though polling was held on a weekday. The dipping a finger into indelible ink introduced in the by-election also speeded up the voting process rather than applying the ink on a finger nail. EC deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar described the election as the quietest ever since he joined the commission. The police confirmed that there was no untoward incidents reported except for a claim of phantom voters allegedly made by a man who is believed to be insane. Slow traffic was reported in a number of areas as residents left for work while motorists headed for polling stations. However, polling was marred when Wan Ahmad's car was stopped by a group of opposition supporters when he visited the Sekolah Kebangsaan Kampung Baharu polling centre. They thought he was an outsider who tried to interfere in the election process as his car did not have the EC crest. Barisan Nasional's Tengku Zaihan Che Ku Abd Rahman, 37, a civil engineer with the Drainage and Irrigation Department who hails from Kuala Besut, is pitted against PAS' Endot alias Azlan Yusof, 48, a contractor, in the by-election. The result is expected to be announced after 10 pm to enable party leaders and supporters to break their fast and perform the Tarawih prayers.