By-elections: Voter turnout still low as of 11am

JOHOR BAHRU - The percentage of voter turnout for the Pulai parliamentary and Simpang Jeram state by-elections were still low as of 11am, today.

Election Commission (EC) chairman Tan Sri Abdul Ghani Salleh said for the Pulai parliamentary, the voter turnout was recorded at 19 per cent, while in the Simpang Jeram state, it was 26 per cent.

He said the rainy weather in the morning in the Pulai parliamentary constituency had contributed to the relatively low voter turnout.

"As of 11am, the voter turnout for the Pulai parliamentary constituency is still low at 19 per cent and for Simpang Jeram, it's 26 per cent. It was raining in Pulai while the weather in Simpang Jeram was relatively good. Alhamdulillah, the voting process is going smoothly.

"EC is still maintaining the target of 70 per cent voter turnout today," he said.

Earlier, overcast and rainy weather accompanied the voting process at the 61 polling centres for the Pulai parliamentary by-election and Simpang Jeram state by-election today.

In Pulai, the sky was clear in the morning but gradually became gloomy at 47 polling centres and a similar situation was observed in Simpang Jeram, which had 14 polling centres.

Based on the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) website, rain was forecasted in the morning, with thunderstorms in the afternoon for both areas.