KUALA LUMPUR (June 23): The Election Commission is in the final process of preparing its recommendations for the redelineation of state electoral constituencies in Sarawak.

The review takes into account the addition of 17 state legislative assembly seats as approved by the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly and came into force in August last year, according to the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.

The recommendations will be released publicly “in the near future, marking the official commencement of the review” under Clause 9, Article 113 of the Federal Constitution, she said.

Azalina was responding in a written parliamentary reply to Saratok member of Parliament Datuk Ali Biju, who asked the prime minister for a detailed timeline of the redelineation process to ensure the addition of the 17 Sarawak State Legislative Assembly seats can be gazetted before the next state election.

Ali also asked whether the redelineation review exercise is coordinated with the claim for one-third of parliamentary seats for the Borneo bloc, in accordance with the Malaysia Agreement 1963. However, the question was not addressed in Azalina’s written reply.

The state seat expansion will see the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly comprise 99 seats, up from the current 82.

The current Sarawak State Legislative Assembly will automatically dissolve in February 2027. The last Sarawak state election was held in December 2021 and is not due until April 15 next year.

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