Johor Bahru (Sept 5): A total of 90% or 831 early voters, namely police officers, had turned out for the Pulai parliamentary by-election to fulfill their responsibilities as constituents.

In a statement, the Election Commission (EC) secretary Ikmalrudin Ishak commended all returning officers and their teams for carrying out their responsibilities during the voting process, which started at 8am.

“We also extend our congratulations and thanks to the police, the information department, media and all quarters directly and indirectly involved, for the cooperation and support given to the EC,” Ikmalrudin said.

According to the EC Data, there are 927 early voters in Pulai parliamentary, where 46 voters voted at the Kempas police station and 881 voters at the Region Two PPM headquarters.

The seat has 166,653 registered voters, EC data showed.

Two by-elections were called in Johor following the death of Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub, who was also the domestic trade and cost of living minister, on July 23.

One was for the Pulai parliamentary seat, and the other was for the Simpang Jeram state seat — both held by Salahuddin since May 2018.

There was no early voting in Simpang Jeram, which is located within the Bakri parliamentary constituency alongside Bukit Naning and Bentayan.

A three-cornered fight is taking place between incumbent Pakatan Harapan, Perikatan Nasional and one independent candidate in both Pulai and Simpang Jeram.