Melaka polls: Voter turnout reaches 59.47pc as of 3pm

MELAKA – Voter turnout for the 16th Melaka state election reached 59.47 per cent as of 3pm today, with 398,085 eligible ordinary voters having cast their ballots, according to the Election Commission's (EC) real-time Voter Turnout Monitoring (VTO) dashboard.

The dashboard also showed that 17 of the state's 28 constituencies had recorded voter turnout exceeding 60 per cent, with Serkam registering the highest participation at 68.61 per cent.

The EC is targeting a voter turnout of between 70 and 75 per cent for the state election, as voters head to polling stations to determine the composition of the next state government.

However, concerns over voter participation have emerged in several constituencies, with Kota Laksamana recording turnout of less than 32 per cent as of 12.30pm.

Its incumbent assemblyman, Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Low Chee Leong, described the figure as unsatisfactory and urged residents to exercise their democratic rights.

"Based on the information I received as of 12.30pm, less than 32 per cent of voters in my constituency of Kota Laksamana had turned out to vote, which remains unsatisfactory.

“I urge all voters to come forward and fulfil their responsibility as Malaysians by exercising their right to elect the state or federal government," he said.

Low's appeal followed an earlier call by Barisan Nasional (BN) incumbent Duyong assemblyman Datuk Mohd Noor Helmy Abdul Halem, who urged voters to turn out in large numbers to avoid complacency.

"Our main concern at the administrative level is not necessarily about winning or losing, but the possibility that voters may become too comfortable and assume there is no need to turn up at the polls.

"Therefore, I urge everyone to work together to ensure strong voter turnout on Nov 14. We must cast our ballots early and encourage our family members, friends and neighbours to fulfil their responsibility by voting," he said on November 10.

A total of 240 polling centres involving 1,213 voting channels opened across Melaka at 8am today, allowing 687,697 registered voters to cast their ballots.

All 240 ordinary polling centres are scheduled to operate from 8am to 6pm across the state's 28 constituencies.

The EC is targeting approximately 70 per cent voter turnout, with 79 candidates contesting all 28 State Legislative Assembly seats.

A coalition needs at least 15 seats to secure a simple majority and form the state government.

In the previous state election in 2021, BN secured 21 seats, followed by Pakatan Harapan (PH) with five and Perikatan Nasional (PN) with two.

The overall turnout in that election was 65.85 per cent, representing 326,068 ballots cast out of 495,195 registered voters.