Melaka State Election: 28 Nomination Centres Open from 9 AM

MELAKA: The nomination process for the 16th Melaka State Election begins today, involving 28 nomination centres across the state, marking the start of the contest for 28 State Legislative Assembly seats.

The nomination process will take place from 9 am to 10 am, with nomination papers submitted to the respective Returning Officers before the list of eligible candidates is officially announced.

The nomination process also marks the beginning of the 14-day campaign period before Melaka voters head to the polls on November 14.

The Election Commission (EC) had previously set November 10 as the early voting date.

The political contest in Melaka features a mix of incumbents, new faces and former leaders seeking to make a comeback in their bid to secure the people’s mandate.

Based on party announcements so far, Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) are fielding 24 and 23 candidates respectively, while Parti Bersama Malaysia (Bersama) has announced 16 candidates.

Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) is fielding eight candidates, while Perikatan Nasional (PN) and Parti Bumiputera Perkasa Malaysia (PUTRA) are each fielding five candidates.

For PH, the candidate allocation comprises 10 from PKR, seven from DAP and seven from Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah).

BN, meanwhile, is fielding 18 UMNO candidates, four from MCA and one from MIC.

Meanwhile, EC Chairman Datuk Seri Ramlan Harun said a total of 189 nomination forms had been purchased for the Melaka State Election as of Thursday night, with 45 prospective candidates having paid their deposits.

According to EC statistics, a total of 687,697 voters are eligible to cast their ballots in this state election, comprising 675,166 ordinary voters, 9,769 military personnel and their spouses, and 2,762 police personnel.

Astro AWANI