KUCHING – Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will use the results of the 2021 state election as the basis for distributing seats among its component parties for the upcoming 13th Sarawak Election, caretaker Premier and GPS chairman Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg said on Wednesday (Oct 28).
Abang Johari said the coalition would discuss the proposed distribution with reference to the number of seats won by each component party in the previous election. He was speaking to reporters after chairing a GPS supreme council meeting in Kuching.
“We will discuss the details based on the seats won by the respective candidates previously,” he said.
In the 2021 state election, Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) contested 47 seats, Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) fielded candidates in 18, Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) contested 11, while Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) stood in six constituencies.
PBB won all 47 seats it contested, while PRS secured victories in all 11 constituencies. SUPP won 13 of its 18 seats, and PDP captured five of the six seats it contested.
However, the composition of the GPS component parties has changed since the last state election, with implications for negotiations over constituency allocation ahead of the next polls.
In April 2024, Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) merged with PDP. The merger increased PDP’s representation to eight seats after three seats previously held by former PSB assemblymen came under the party. Two of those constituencies had been contested by SUPP in the 2021 election.
The coalition’s seat-sharing discussions will therefore take place against a different political landscape from that of the previous election, with party representation and constituency claims likely to be important considerations during negotiations.
Separately, See Chee How, an independent incumbent assemblyman aligned with GPS, submitted an application to join SUPP on Monday. His application comes as the coalition prepares for the next state election and its component parties consider their respective positions.
Abang Johari confirmed that GPS intended to contest all 82 seats in the coming election. The Election Commission (EC) had not announced the election date at the time of his remarks.
He said the coalition had formally declared its readiness to contest the election this year, adding that preparations were already under way.
On the timing of the candidate announcement, Abang Johari said GPS would reveal its line-up before nomination day. He did not provide a specific date for the announcement.
The caretaker Premier also confirmed that some sitting representatives, including ministers, would make way for new candidates. However, he declined to name those who would not seek another term, saying the details would be disclosed after the EC announced the election dates.
Abang Johari indicated that some of those planning to step aside were from PBB, the coalition’s largest component party by the number of seats contested in 2021.
The eventual seat distribution and candidate list will provide a clearer picture of how GPS intends to accommodate changes in party representation while preparing to defend its position across all 82 constituencies.
For now, the coalition’s stated approach is to use the previous election results as the starting point for negotiations, with further details expected closer to the official election timetable. â Sarawak Daily
