Ramkarpal Singh of the DAP has succeeded his father, the late Karpal Singh, as the member of Parliament for Bukit Gelugor.
He pulled in 41,242 votes at yesterday’s by-election, winning him a gigantic 37,659-vote majority over his closest rival, Parti Cinta Malaysia vice-president Datuk Huan Cheng Guan.
The other two candidates in the four-way fight fared dismally, as independent candidates Mohamed Nabi Bux Mohd Nabi Abd Sathar garnered 799 votes, Abu Backer Sidek Mohd Zan got 225.
All three losing candidates also lost their RM10,000 deposit after failing to secure 12.5% of the total votes each.
While Ramkarpal’s majority is still lower than that won by his father in last year’s general election, the lower turnout meant that he still tookk away a larger percentage of the votes cast. At 41,778 votes, Karpal’s majority constituted 79.1% of the votes last year; Ramkarpal took 89% yesterday.
Election Commission chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said the voter turnour was 46,099, or 56.04% of the registered constituents, among the lowest in Malaysian by-election history, The Star Online reports. Abdul Aziz said the low turnout was probably due to Barisan Nasional (BN) not fielding a candidate for this by-election.
Ramkarpal dedicated his victory to his late father.
“The most important thing as far as I am concerned, in this election, is my father, the late Karpal Singh. He is certainly an important part in this victory. I dedicate it entirely to him.
“I knew throughout the campaign, he was always with me. He was certainly part of this victory,” he told reporters at the tallying hall last night.
He also thanked the voters for their support. None of his three opponents were present at the final tally.
