Proposed 17 New Sarawak Seats Unlikely Ready for Next State Election, Says EC Chairman

KUCHING, Sept 24 – The 17 proposed new state constituencies in Sarawak are unlikely to be implemented in time for the upcoming state election, according to Election Commission (EC) Chairman Datuk Seri Ramlan Harun.

Speaking to reporters after reviewing the exhibition for the proposed Sarawak Electoral Boundary Review at the Kuching North City Hall (DBKU) on Thursday, Ramlan explained that the statutory review process will extend beyond February 2027, when the current term of the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly officially expires.

“The term of the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly expires in February 2027, so based on the process we need to go through, I expect we will not be able to use the new seats in the next state election,” Ramlan stated.

The Sarawak Legislative Assembly passed the State Legislative Assembly (Composition of Members) Bill 2025 in July last year to expand the total number of state seats from 82 to 99.

Addressing public feedback on the redelineation exercise, Ramlan revealed that the EC has received 18 formal objections to date regarding the proposed electoral boundary review.

The objections cover various concerns, including adjustments to polling district boundaries and specific name changes for state constituencies across Sarikei, Bintulu, and Sibu.

Ramlan assured that the commission will conduct detailed evaluations and assessments of all submitted representations before finalizing the review.

–NMT