Early voting begins for 24,751 Johor state election voters, including military and police personnel, across 64 polling centres.
JOHOR BAHRU: A total of 24,751 early voters eligible to vote in the 16th Johor state election will cast their ballots today at 64 gazetted polling centres across the state.
The early voting electorate comprises 12,041 members of the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) and their spouses, as well as 12,710 Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) and General Operations Force (GOF) personnel and their spouses.
Of the total PDRM early voters, 12,067 will vote in person today, while 643 have cast their ballots by post.
All 53 police polling centres and 11 military polling centres will open simultaneously at 8 am. Polling will close progressively between noon and 6 pm, depending on the location and the number of registered voters.
Polling centres with small electorates, including Tenang Police Station in the Tenang state constituency, with only six voters, and Bukit Besar Police Station in the Pasir Raja constituency, with 11 voters, are expected to close as early as noon.
Meanwhile, polling centres at the Muar District Police Headquarters (IPD), Kahang Police Station in the Kahang constituency and Johor Bahru Utara IPD will remain open until 6 pm.
To ensure a smooth voting process, the police have deployed 3,565 personnel, comprising 647 officers, 2,806 rank-and-file personnel and 112 civilian staff, to oversee operations statewide.
Their duties include securing polling centres, escorting ballot boxes, managing traffic, conducting crime prevention patrols, staffing operations rooms, monitoring strategic locations and enforcing the law throughout the election.
All early ballot boxes will be kept at designated police stations and will only be opened for counting after the close of ordinary polling on Saturday.
The 16th Johor state election has attracted 172 candidates contesting 56 state seats, with polling day for 2.7 million registered voters set for July 11.
For the latest updates on the 16th Johor state election, visit https://prn.bernama.com/johor/
