PUTRAJAYA: The Election Commission (EC) is expected to announce the overall results for 14th General Election (GE14) before 10pm.
Its chairman Tan Sri Mohd Hashim Abdullah said the commission would make the announcement once it gets the results.
“Sekiranya dapat keputusan awal, SPR akan umum awal. Harap2 dapat umum sebelum jam 10. (If we get the results early, we will announce it early. We hope we can make the announcement before 10pm).” he said via Whatsapp when contacted by NSTP.
Later in a statement, Hashim said a total of 14,449,200 registered voters would cast their ballots tomorrow at 8,253 polling centres through 28,115 voting channels, starting at 8am.
He said while most polling centres will be closed at 5pm, some will be closed at different times depending on the location.
“Since rainfall is expected tomorrow, voters are advised to plan their time to go out to vote and not wait to cast their ballots last minute. For those who live at locations where the polling centres will close early, they are reminded to vote early.
“For those living at locations where the polling centres close at 5pm, they are advised to go out in stages according to their convenient time to avoid congestion at the polling centres,”he said in a statement.
He also advised voters to check their polling details through MySPR Semak , at its website pengundi.spr.gov.my, portal, call 03-88927018 or through short messaging system (SMS) by typing SPR followed by the identity card number and sending an SMS to 15888.
“Political parties are not allowed to set up or operate an office or station under the pretext of helping voters to check their polling information.
“EC also seeks cooperation from the voters not to simply give their identification card to strangers as this can be misused by irresponsible parties and can cause problems on the polling day,” he added.
He said voters will have their fingers checked to ensure that they have no ink marks or any materials such as nail polish, oil or fake fingers that can prevent the ink from sticking to their fingers.
“After inspection, voters will dip their index finger into the ink bottle. If the voter refuses to mark his finger with ink, then that person will not be given the ballot paper. Voters are also advised not to be deceived by certain quarters who tell them to mark their finger with ink before voting,” he said.
EC had also reminded employers to allow their staff who have registered as voters to cast their ballots. Under Section 25(3) of the Act, any employer who refused to allow their workers to go to vote on polling day is liable to a fine up to RM5,000 or jail term of one year upon conviction.
He said no campaigning activities were allowed on polling day, especially appeals to get a vote, which was an offence under Election Offence Act 1954.
“During the voting period, election agents will be allowed to be in the voting channels to observe the voting process, and they are reminded not to wear any outfit that bears the symbol or picture of candidates referring to political party.
“Voters are also not allowed to wear any attire showing the party’s symbol, pictures or candidate’s name when entering the polling station as any form of campaign activity is prohibited on the polling day,” he said.
He said the tabulation process would be conducted after the end of the voting session according to the stipulated time at the polling stations, not at the official tabulation centre. During the counting process, agents will also be there to witness the process.
“Last but not least, everyone, including candidates, supporters, party personnel and voters are advised to comply with the law, rules, ethics and directive set by EC and the police to ensure a smooth, peace and harmonious GE14 process.”