EC: Kajang state by-election is on March 23

PUTRAJAYA (Feb 5, 2014): The by-election for the Kajang state seat in Selangor will be held on March 23, with nomination day set for March 11 and early voting on March 19, the Election Commission (EC) announced today.
Its chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said the date of the by-election has been set for the end of March to allow enough time for preparation.
"The EC was taken by surprise when the assemblyman (Lee Chin Cheh) resigned.
"We did not expect a by-election so soon and we are affected because the EC is in the process of working on the delineation preparations," Abdul Aziz told a press conference after chairing a special meeting on the matter.
It was reported that Parti Keadilan Rakyat's (PKR) Kajang assemblyman Lee resigned from his post on Jan 27, following which PKR announced that Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will contest the seat.
He made the announcement after a special meeting to discuss the vacancy in the Selangor State Legislative Assembly following the sudden resignation of the assemblyman,
During the 13th General Election in May last year, Lee had won the seat with a majority of 6,824 votes in a six-cornered fight.
Abdul Aziz said the EC will follow the 2012 electoral roll and the addition of updated new voter registrations from the first quarter of 2013 until Jan 26 this year.
He said that the nomination of candidates and the official vote tabulation centre will be at Kompleks Sukan MPKJ in Bandar Baru Bangi.
Abdul Aziz said there will be 18 polling centres including three early voting centres.
He said the Kajang state by-election is expected to cost about RM1.6 million.
Asked about the EC's action on those campaigning prior to nomination day, he said: "The EC only has the power to monitor the election campaign from nomination until polling day.
"Any campaigning activities prior to nomination day does not fall under the EC's area of responsibility but other enforcement authorities should monitor that," said Abdul Aziz.
He also stressed that all parties involved in the by-election must adhere to the election regulations as outlined by the EC.
"Whether or not this by-election will be a "hot" one as speculated, for the EC all elections are the same.
"We have appointed three enforcement teams to monitor all campaigns and election activities," Abdul Aziz said.
He added that the police have been doing a "good job" during election campaigns to control any unwanted incidents.
Abdul Aziz said one of the reasons to hold the by-election in late March, was because the purchase and delivery of the indelible ink would take a minimum of two weeks.
He said the estimated cost of the ink this time would be about RM20,000 to accommodate 39,278 registered voters in the constituency.
"We need to have an electoral roll that is complete and as clean as possible," Abdul Aziz said, adding that the EC has to train its staff to ensure that mistakes which occurred during previous elections are not repeated.