Judicial review of election rejected, Masidi remains Karanaan assemblyman

LocalPolitics
11 Mar 2026 • 5:53 PM MYT
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AN application by an independent candidate for a judicial review to challenge the results of the Karanaan State Legislative Assembly (DUN) election won by Deputy Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun, was dismissed by the Kota Kinabalu High Court.

Naomi @ Neomi Francis, 59, filed an application for a review of Masidi's victory, alleging misconduct and procedural irregularities in the election in the DUN.

High Court Judge, Datuk Alexander Siew How Wai, said the court found the application to be baseless.

"The prerequisites for permission were not met, and this matter is not suitable for judicial review.

"Therefore, the application for leave to appeal is dismissed," he said in proceedings held at the Kota Kinabalu High Court.

Accordingly, the court ordered Naomi to pay costs of RM5,000 to the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) and RM5,000 to Masidi.

Naomi filed the leave application on December 26 last year, naming the Election Commission (EC) as the first respondent and Masidi as the second respondent.

In the Sabah State Election (PRN) on November 29 last year, Masidi from Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) won the seat with a majority of 5,361 votes in a seven-cornered contest

Meanwhile, Naomi only obtained 115 votes. – March 11, 2026