KUALA LUMPUR – The Election Commission (EC) has confirmed that no by-elections will be held for the three Perlis state seats declared vacant following the sacking of PAS assemblymen last month.
EC chairman Datuk Seri Ramlan Harun said the commission would not convene any special meeting on the matter after being informed that fresh polls were not required.
“There will be no by-elections, and there is no need to convene a special meeting to discuss holding them,” the New Straits Times quoted him saying.
This follows an announcement by Perlis Speaker Rus’sele Eizan, who yesterday confirmed there would be no by-elections for the Bintong, Chuping and Guar Sanji seats, and that the constituencies will remain vacant until the next general election.
The three seats were declared vacant after Fakhrul Anwar Ismail (Bintong), Mohd Ridzuan Hashim (Guar Sanji) and Saad Seman (Chuping) lost their PAS memberships during the peak of Perlis’ political crisis, triggered by internal tensions and claims of statutory declarations against then Menteri Besar Mohd Shukri Ramli.
Shukri resigned on December 25 citing health reasons and has since been replaced by Kuala Perlis assemblyman Abu Bakar Hamzah of Bersatu as the new Menteri Besar.
Rus’sele earlier said the decision not to proceed with by-elections took into account PAS’ renewed commitment to the Perikatan Nasional-led administration and confirmation that the state government still retains a solid majority of 11 out of 15 seats, alongside guidance from the Raja of Perlis for PN assemblymen to reunite and ensure stability.– January 1, 2026