PUTRAJAYA: Any candidate who decides to withdraw after the nomination day will still be regarded as contesting and their names will still be printed on the ballot papers.
Election Commission (EC) deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said it was in line with the abolition of the nomination withdrawal period introduced by the EC for the coming polls.
“Under the EC law, the candidates cannot do so but if they still wish to announce their withdrawal, that is their individual right.
“The voters can still vote the name of the candidate and the ballot papers will still be counted,” he told reporters at a press conference, here yesterday.
The abolition of the candidate’s withdrawal was among the improvements introduced by the EC, in line with the recommendation of the Parliamentary Special Committee (PSC) on Improvements in the Election Process.
In addition, Wan Ahmad said if there were straight fights and one of the candidates withdrew, the returning officer (RO) could not announce the remaining candidate as having won unopposed because the ballot papers would still be counted.
“The EC is confident that such action would not hinder the balloting process as well as the printing process for the ballot papers which was expected to be completed today,” he said.
Asked on postal voting by media personnel, he said the closing date for application was today and the EC expected the decision whether the applicants were eligible for postal voting would be known during the weekend. — Bernama