SANDAKAN: A total of 270 police personnel will cast their ballots tomorrow as early voters in the Sandakan parliamentary by-election.

Election Commission (EC) chairman Azhar Azizan Harun said today they will vote at the Sandakan Marine Police senior officers’ mess and the Sandakan District Police Headquarters clubhouse.

The early-voting centre at the senior officers’ mess will be open from 8am to 2pm and that at the clubhouse, from 8am to noon, he said in a statement.

The agents of the candidates and the election observers appointed by the EC will witness the early voting, he said.

Vivian Wong Shir Yee of DAP is engaged in a five-cornered contest in the by-election for the seat held by her father Datuk Stephen Wong Tien Fatt who died on March 28. The other contestants are Datuk Linda Tsen Thau Lin of Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) and three independents.

Azhar Azizan also said that the EC will carry live streaming of the early voting process on the EC Facebook page.

He said that after the early voting, all the ballot boxes will be kept at the police station lock-up and the ballots will be counted on polling day on May 11 at the hall of Sekolah Menengah Jenis Kebangsaan Tiong Hua Sandakan.

He also said that the counting of the ballots will be witnessed by the candidates’ agents and the election observers. - Bernama