KUCHING: Sarawak’s 17 proposed new constituencies correspond to population growth while reshaping the state’s political balance, says analyst Datuk Dr Lee Kuok Tiung.
The Election Commission (EC) is displaying the proposed new constituencies and revised electoral boundaries for public inspection until Sept 30, marking one of Sarawak’s biggest redelineation exercises in recent decades.
Lee, an associate professor at Universiti Malaysia Sabah’s Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, said the exercise reflects the impact of urbanisation, Undi18 and Automatic Voter Registration (AVR), while addressing long-standing underrepresentation across the vast state.
“I believe this is a natural response to population growth, Undi18 and AVR, but the underlying priority remains rectifying historical underrepresentation,” he said.
He argued that Sarawak’s enormous geographical size makes it difficult to apply the principle of “one person, one vote, one value” in the same way as Malaya.
“If representation is based purely on population, Sabah and Sarawak will forever be left behind despite contributing significantly to the country’s natural wealth,” he said, pointing to continuing challenges such as dilapidated schools, poor roads, and inadequate water and electricity infrastructure.
While the EC’s proposal is administrative in nature, Lee believes its political consequences are unavoidable.
“Whatever we do, we cannot deny that this redelineation directly affects the balance of political power,” he said.
Historically, he noted, many of the newly created constituencies are located in urban and semi-urban areas where opposition parties have traditionally performed well.
However, Lee cautioned against assuming those areas will remain permanent opposition strongholds.
Demographic shifts driven by migration have changed the composition of cities, with more Bumiputera families relocating into suburban growth corridors while some Chinese residents move outward in search of better living conditions.
He cited Sabah’s Api-Api constituency as an example, where increasing voter numbers coincided with a declining Chinese voter proportion.
He also said additional seats could reduce internal competition within Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) by creating more opportunities for candidate placement and succession.
Lee described the proposed map as revealing Sarawak’s evolving political geography through three distinct development corridors.
The Southern Growth Corridor gains the largest share with eight proposed seats: Jagoi, Pasir Pandak, Matang, Semarak, Tabuan Jaya, Maong, Samarindah and Sungai Serin.
The Central Region receives five seats — Tanah Mas, Sungai Merah, Bukit Kemuyang, Melekun and Igan — reflecting population growth around Sibu and Hulu Rajang.
Meanwhile, the Northern Corridor adds four constituencies: Permaisuri, Tudan, Batu Niah and Usun Apau, strengthening representation across Bintulu, Miri, Subis and interior Baram.
According to Lee, the southern corridor stands to gain the greatest political influence because it represents Sarawak’s fastest-growing urban and semi-urban belt stretching from Kuching through Samarahan towards Serian.
“The geographical distribution reflects rapid population growth driven by urbanisation and migration,” he said.
He added that the proposed boundaries also acknowledge the practical challenge of representing exceptionally large constituencies, particularly in interior and semi-rural areas.
“The map shows the need to divide areas where voter numbers have exceeded effective single-member representation, while also improving representation in vast constituencies such as Usun Apau, Melekun, Jagoi and Batu Niah,” he said.
The EC’s public display allows voters, local authorities and stakeholders to inspect the proposed boundaries and submit objections before the redelineation process proceeds further.
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