PETALING JAYA: The Election Commission (EC) is in the final stage of preparing recommendations for Sarawak’s long-awaited electoral redelineation exercise, paving the way for the review to incorporate 17 additional state constituencies approved by the Sarawak Legislative Assembly.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said the recommendations would be displayed in the near future, officially commencing the redelineation exercise under Article 113(9) of the Federal Constitution.
In a written parliamentary reply, she said the EC had taken into account the state legislation approving the 17 additional seats, which came into force on Aug 8, 2025.
“Based on input received from the EC, the eight-year interval for Sarawak’s redelineation ended on Aug 21, 2023.
“At present, the EC is in the final stage of preparing recommendations for the redelineation of Sarawak’s electoral boundaries, taking into account the addition of 17 state seats approved by the Sarawak Legislative Assembly,” she said as reported by Free Malaysia Today.
Azalina said the EC would have up to two years from the date the official notice is published to complete the review, in accordance with the Federal Constitution.
However, she did not indicate whether the exercise would be completed before the dissolution of the Sarawak Legislative Assembly ahead of the next state election.
She was responding to Betong MP Datuk Dr Richard Rapu, who asked whether the government could guarantee that the redelineation exercise would be completed before the state assembly is dissolved.
Richard said retaining the existing 82 state constituencies would not only be inconsistent with the Sarawak Legislative Assembly’s decision to increase the number of seats but could also affect efforts to address the development needs of large rural constituencies.
Sarawak last held its state election in December 2021. The current term of the state assembly expires in February 2027 unless it is dissolved earlier, with the next state election required to be held by April 2027 at the latest.
Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg has previously said the next Sarawak election is likely to be held using the existing 82 state constituencies if the redelineation exercise is not completed in time to implement the additional seats.
