BINTULU: Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) has successfully retained the Jepak state seat with its candidate Iskandar Turkee having been declared the winner of the by-election tonight.
Election Commission (EC) returning officer Abang Zainuddin Abang Turkey announced the results at 8.30 pm at the vote tallying centre in Dewan Suarah Bintulu here.
Iskandar, 54, a former Sarawak branch National Anti-Drug Agency (NADA) director, beat Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) candidate Stevenson Joseph Sumbang and Parti Aspirasi Rakyat Sarawak (Aspirasi) candidate Chieng Lea Phing with a 8,784-vote majority, after accumulating 9,638 votes against Stevenson's 854 votes and Chieng's 431 votes.
Voter turnout was 48.57 per cent in a constituency with 22,804 voters, 22,761 of them ordinary voters and 43 police personnel.
The by-election was held following the death of six-term incumbent Datuk Talib Zulpilip on Sept 15. Talib won the Jepak seat by a majority of 4.243 votes in the state election in 2021.– BERNAMA