With the official date of GE15 expected to be announced soon, there has been a mad scramble among Malaysians, especially those voting for the first time.
If you’re are one who’s still in a blur over what you need to do, you’ve come to the right place!
Here are 5 things you need to know before GE15 descends upon us:
1. Congrats! You’re officially a voter!
Wait, what? Even for those who never went to the post office to register as a voter? The answer’s yes!
Thanks to the passing of the Undi18 bill, all Malaysians aged 18 years old and above have automatically registered as voters!
To check your personal details and polling station, just go to mysprsemak.spr.gov.my. This will definitely save up a lot of time unlike previously when voters had to go to SPR-approved counters.
Watch the clip below to know how to do so within seconds!
@weirdkayamy #WKpilih | Now you have no excuse of being lazy to register… #GE15 #GE #UNDI18 #MalaysiaGE ♬ original sound – ookbeemy
What if you need to change my polling station? This clip will show you how:
@weirdkayamy Replying to @mir #WKpilih | More details, go to weirdkaya.com to read the article. #GE15 #generalelection #Voter #undi18 #sprsemak #myspr ♬ original sound – Sansan✌️✅ – Sansan✌️🌸
2. Why do we tick two ballots?
Malaysian elections are held at two levels: federal and state.
At the federal level, Malaysians will vote for 222 MPs to the Dewan Rakyat, where the party/coalition with a two-third majority (112 seats) will form the government.
As for the state level, voters will elect members for the state assembly, also known as Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (ADUN).
While state elections are usually held together with the federal elections, each state has the discretion on whether to dissolve the state assembly or serve the maximum 5-year term starting from the date where it was first formed.
3. Many states will not dissolve their DUNs for GE15
This year’s a bit special as several states will not be dissolving their respective state assemblies (DUN).
For example, the three PH-led states (Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Penang) will not dissolve as the state government wants to focus more on providing flood relief in light of the incoming monsoon season.
Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) has also followed suit, announcing that the state assemblies of Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah will stay put.
As for Melaka, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak, they will also be taking the same steps as Melaka and Sarawak recently held snap elections in November and December 2021 respectively, while Sabah held one in September 2020 and Johor in March 2022.
4. GE15 will see voters aged 18-21 taking part
GE15 is set to be a historical moment for young Malaysians aged 18 to 20 years old this will be their first time taking part in the nation’s democratic process.
In 2019, Parliament unanimously agreed to amend the Federal Constitution to reduce the voting age from 21 to 18 years old and implement automatic voter registration simultaneously.
The Undi18, which started out as a student movement in 2016, was also gazetted into law on 10 Sept 2019.
On top of lowering the voting age, the Undi18 Bill also includes automatic voter registration for Malaysians aged 18-years-old and seeks to lower the age eligibility for those wanting to serve as MPs and state assemblypersons.
5. Anti-party hopping law is now in effect
Politicians seeking to switch party allegiance will now no longer be given the freedom to do so after the Anti-Hopping law was formally passed on July 28 this year.
With the bill being passed, it means that any Member of Parliament (MP) who jumps to another party will automatically lose his/her seat.
That being said, we hope that this piece of legislature will maintain political stability and prevent our elected representatives from betraying the people’s mandate.
Ever wondered which MP absolutely loved hopping like a katak? Read the article below:
