Four-cornered fight for Semenyih in Malaysia by-election

Semenyih by-election candidates (from left) Parti Sosialis Malaysia's Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul, independent candidate Kuan Chee Heng, Pakatan Harapan's Muhammad Aiman Zainali and Barisan Nasional's Zakaria Hanafi. PHOTO: BERNAMA
The four candidates are: (from left) Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul, Muhammad Aiman Zainali, Zakaria Hanafi and Kuan Chee Heng. PHOTO: FACEBOOK/PENDETA ADUKA TARUNA

SEMENYIH (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The Semenyih by-election is set to be a four-cornered fight with Barisan Nasional, Parti Sosialis Malaysia and independent candidate Kuan Chee Heng challenging the incumbent Pakatan Harapan.

Returning officer Mohd Sayuthi Bakar announced at 10.25am on Saturday (Feb 16) that none of the four nomination papers were rejected.

Pakatan will defend the seat it won in the 14th General Election through 30-year-old Muhammad Aiman Zainali, who is the treasurer of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia's Hulu Langat division.

Barisan's candidate is 58-year-old Zakaria Hanafi, the permanent chairman of Kampung Sesapan Kelubi Umno branch.

PSM's 25-year-old Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul and philanthropist Kuan are Muhammad Aiman's other challengers.

The mood at the nomination centre was very friendly, as rival party members were seen mingling with each other as they waited for the nomination process to be over.

The march towards the nomination centre was also a peaceful affair, as supporters gathered at designated locations as early as 8am.

The Semenyih by-election was triggered due to the death of its incumbent Bakhtiar Mohd Nor from a heart attack on Jan 11.

In GE14, Bakhtiar won a four-cornered fight against Barisan's Datuk Johan Abd Aziz, PAS' Mad Shahmiour Mat Kosim and PSM's S. Arutchelvan - with a majority of 8,964 votes.

The Semenyih polls is the sixth by-election post-GE14, and the second to be held in 2019 after Cameron Highlands.

It is also the fourth by-election for the Selangor state assembly, following Sungai Kandis (Aug 4), Balakong and Seri Setia (jointly held on Sept 8).

The Election Commission has set Feb 26 for early voting, while polling will be held on March 2.

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