KUALA LUMPUR: THE 14th General Election (GE14) is shaping up to be the most hotly contested polls in the country’s history, with 2,333 candidates vying for 222 parliamentary and 505 state seats.
Befitting its bill as the “mother of all elections”, the nomination process yesterday was not without drama and a few heart-stopping moments.
Even before Barisan Nasional kick-started its campaign yesterday, the coalition looking to secure its 14th term in Parliament savoured its first victory when the Election Commission (EC) announced that Rantau assemblyman Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan, who is Negri Sembilan menteri besar, won uncontested.
His sole contender, PKR’s Dr Streram Sinnasamy, was barred from entering the Dewan Sri Rembau nomination centre for not having the EC candidate pass.
This polls have registered a significant increase in the number of candidates compared with GE13, which then saw 1,900
candidates contesting for 579
parliamentary and for 1,321 state seats.
This time, 687 candidates will be gunning for a seat in Parliament. The race for state seats will see 1,646 hopefuls trying to convince voters in the next 10 days why they should be elected on May 9, the polling day.
The polls fever also saw an increase in independent candidates.
Forty-six of them, including a few celebrities, former journalists and social activists, are among those who may split votes for either BN or the opposition.
Major players in these polls are BN, Pas and opposition parties running under PKR’s logo (in Peninsular Malaysia) — PKR, DAP, Parti Amanah Negara and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia.
Aside from the Rantau incident, BN will fight only a Pas candidate and two independents in the Batu parliamentary seat, after its incumbent, PKR’s Tian Chua, was disqualified on grounds of his RM2,000 fine imposed by the Shah Alam High Court previously.
BN’s Datuk Dr Dominic Lau will face Batu Pas chief Azhar Yahya and independents P. Prabakaran and Datuk Panjamorthy Muthu-samy.
The EC rejected the nomination of 11 candidates in total.
BN is contesting all 222 parliamentary and 505 state seats, while the DAP-led opposition, which is using the PKR logo, is contesting 191 parliamentary and 448 state seats.
Pas is going for 158 parliamentary and 393 state seats.
PKR cut it real close in its chance for a race for the Bukit Melawati state seat when its candidate, G. Sivamalar, was forced to be replaced by Juwariyah Zulkifli.
The address on her MyKad was that of an area in Pahang.
The polls will see only 70 straight fights in 30 parliamentary and 40 state seats, with the rest involving from three to seven contenders.
EC chairman Tan Sri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said 494 seats, 151 of them parliamentary, will see a three-cornered battle.
It’s a four-way fight in 113 constituencies, 33 of which are parliamentary seats.
Five contenders will fight it out in six parliamentary and 31 state seats.
Two parliamentary and nine state seats will bear witness to a crowded six-cornered fight.
The Merotai state seat in Sabah will see a seven-cornered fight.
Among those seeing a four-way fight is the Pekan parliamentary seat, which prime minister and BN chairman Datuk Seri Najib Razak will be defending against Athiatudin Daud (Pas),
Mohamad Zahid Md Arip (PKR) and independent candidate Datuk Paduka Abd Kadir Sainuddin.
Bagan Datuk parliamentary seat will see a three-way battle, where BN deputy chairman and Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi will be defending his parliamentary seat against Ata Abdul Muneim Hasan Adli (Pas) and Pakhrurrazi Arshad (PKR).
In GE14, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is the oldest candidate at 93-years-old and Prabakaran, 22, in Batu, is the youngest.
The former prime minister and PPBM chairman will contest against Datuk Nawawi Ahmad, the BN incumbent, and Pas’ Zubir Ahmad in the Langkawi parliamentary constituency.
Independent candidate K. Kanafatty was the only one who had left the race before it began, when he voluntarily pulled out of the contest for the Skudai state seat.
GE14 will also see a heated family feud between prominent politicians in the parliamentary seats of Semporna and Tebrau, and the state seats of Bukit Antarabangsa and Tambunan.
The most notable family affairs include the flamboyant TV host and actor Azwan Ali, better known as “Diva AA”, who is standing as an independent against his elder brother and PKR deputy president Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali, for the Bukit Antarabangsa state seat.
In Semporna, the state seat of Senallang will see a straight fight between Semporna BN division chairman Datuk Seri Nasir Sakaran and Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, who are cousins..
For the Tambunan state seat, BN incumbent Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan will face off his brother, Datuk Jeffrey Kitingan of Parti Solidariti Tanah Airku, and brother-in-law Justin Alip from Warisan.
The oldest state seat candidate is 78 years old and the youngest is 23.
EC is anticipating an 85 per cent voter turnout and expects the full results to be announced at 9pm on polling day.