1 PART I PRELIMINARY-1. Short title.

This Act may be cited as the Elections Act 1958 .

2 PART I PRELIMINARY-2. Interpretation.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires :

  "Adjudicating Officer"  means the Adjudicating Officer appointed under section 8;

[Ins. Act A1155]

  "candidate"  means a person who is nominated in accordance with any regulations made under this Act as a candidate for an election;

  "Chief Registrar", "Deputy Chief Registrar", "Registrar", "Deputy Registrar" and "Assistant Registrar"  mean respectively the Chief Registrar of Electors, Deputy Chief Registrar of Electors, Registrar of Electors, Deputy Registrar of Electors and Assistant Registrar of Electors appointed under section 8;

[Ins. Act A1155]

  "constituency"  means a Parliamentary constituency or a State constituency, as the case may be

3 PART II SUPERVISION OF ELECTIONS-3. Appointment of officers.

The Election Commission may, subject to Clause (1) of Article 115(1) of the Constitution, appoint :

(a) a Secretary and such number of Deputy Secretaries, Principal Assistant Secretaries and Assistant Secretaries to the Election Commission as the Commission may consider necessary;

[Am. Act A1155 - Prior text read- "a Secretary and a Deputy Secretary and so many Assistant Secretaries to the Election Commission as the Commission may consider necessary;"]

(b) a State Elections Officer and so many Deputy State Elections Officers for each State as the Commission may consider necessary;

[Am. Act A1205]

(c) a returning officer and so many assistant returning officers for each constituency as the Commission may consider necessary; and

[Am. Act A1205]

(d) an enforcement officer and so many

3A PART II SUPERVISION OF ELECTIONS-3A. General powers and duties of Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Assistant Secretaries.

(1) The Secretary shall be the chief administrative officer of the Election Commission, subject at all times and in all matters to the supervision, direction and control of the Commission, and shall :

(a) implement the decisions of the Commission;

(b) carry out the day-to-day administration of the offices of the Commission, and exercise supervision, direction and control over all other election officers, and all other officers of the Commission;

(c) carry out such functions as may be given to him by the Commission in or for the exercise of its powers or the performance of its duties in relation to the review or delimitation of constituencies, the registration of electors, the conduct of elections and other matters;

(d) have power to signify on behalf of the Commission all writs, notices and other documents of the Commission, all subsidiary legislation made by the Commissio

4 PART II SUPERVISION OF ELECTIONS-4. Powers of officers.

(1) A State Elections Officer shall, subject to the direction and control of the Election Commission, have all the powers and may perform all the duties of the Commission in relation to the conduct of elections in the State for which he is appointed.

(2) A Deputy State Elections Officer shall, subject to the direction and control of the State Elections Officer, have all the powers and perform all the duties of the State Elections Officer in the State for which he is appointed.

(2A) A returning officer shall, in common with other election officers, be subject to the control, supervision and direction of the Election Commission as provided in section (5) (1) (a) and (b) .

(3) An assistant returning officer shall, subject to the direction and control of the returning officer whom he is appointed to assist, have all the powers and may perform all the duties of the returning officer.

(4) (a)

5 PART II SUPERVISION OF ELECTIONS-5. General powers and duties of Election Commission.

(1) The Election Commission shall :

(a) exercise control and supervision over the conduct of elections and the registration of electors on the electoral rolls, and shall enforce on the part of all election officers fairness, impartiality and compliance with Part VIII of the Constitution and this Act and any regulations made thereunder;

(b) have powers to issue to election officers such directions as may be deemed necessary by the Commission to ensure effective execution of Part VIII of the Constitution and this Act and any regulations made thereunder;

(c) have power to administer any oath required to be taken under this Act and any regulations made thereunder; and

(d) execute and perform all other powers and duties which are conferred or imposed upon it by this Act and any regulations made thereunder.

(2) The Election Commission may delegate, subject

6 PART II SUPERVISION OF ELECTIONS-6. (Repealed by Act 14 of 1962).

7 PART III CONSTITUENCIES-7. Polling districts and polling centres.

[Am. Act A1317]

(1) As soon as may be after the delimitation of a constituency in accordance with the Constitution, and thereafter when any constituency is altered or a new constituency is created, the Election Commission shall :

(a) divide each constituency into polling districts;

(b) assign to each polling district a distinguishing letter or letters or number or both;

(c) appoint a place or places at which a polling centre or centres for the district shall be established; and

[Am. Act A1317]

(d) publish in the Gazette a notice specifying :

(i) the polling districts into which the constituency has been divided;

(ii) the distinguishing letter or letters or number or both assigned to each polling district; and

(iii) the place or places appointed for the establishment

8 PART IV REGISTRATION OF ELECTORS-8. Appointment of officers.

(1) The Election Commission may, subject to Clause (1) of Article 115 of the Constitution, appoint:

(a) a Chief Registrar of Electors for Malaysia;

(b) a Deputy Chief Registrar of Electors for Malaysia;

(c) a Registrar of Electors for each state;

(d) a Deputy Registrar of Electors for each State;

(e) such number of Assistant Registrars of Electors as it may consider necessary; and

(f) an Adjudicating Officer for each registration area.

[Subs. Act A1317]

(2) Subject to the direction and control of the Election Commission, the Chief Registrar shall exercise general control and supervision over all matters relating to:

(a) the registration of electors; and

(b) the preparation, publication and revision of an electoral roll,

9 PART IV REGISTRATION OF ELECTORS-9. Preparation, publication and revision of electoral rolls.

(1) Each Registrar shall prepare, publish and revise in the prescribed manner the prescribed electoral rolls for the registration area for which he is appointed.

[Am. Act A1155 - Prior text read- "Each registering officer shall prepare, publish and revise in the prescribed manner an electoral roll for the constituency for which he is appointed."]

(2) The electoral rolls for Parliamentary electors and State electors shall, unless the Election Commission shall otherwise direct, be combined in a single register.

9A PART IV REGISTRATION OF ELECTORS-9A. Certified or re-certified electoral roll shall be deemed to be final.

After an electoral roll has been certified or re-certified, as the case may be, and notice of the certification or recertification has been published in the Gazette as prescribed by regulations made under this Act, the electoral roll shall be deemed to be final and binding and shall not be questioned or appealed against in, or reviewed, quashed or set aside by, any court.

[Ins. Act A1155]

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10 PART IV REGISTRATION OF ELECTORS-10. Registration in one constituency only.

No person shall be entitled to be entered on the electoral rolls as an elector in more than one constituency for the purposes of any election.

11 PART IV REGISTRATION OF ELECTORS-11. (Deleted).

[Deleted by Act A1155 - Prior text read- "Qualifying date.

For the purposes of Article 119 of the Constitution the qualifying date, that is to say, the date by reference to which the electoral rolls are prepared or revised, shall be the date immediately preceding the commencement of the period, determined in accordance with regulations made under this Act, during which application may be made for registration on the electoral roll as a Parliamentary or State elector, or such other date as the Election Commission may by notification in the Gazette appoint."]

12 PART V CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS-12. Writs of election.

(1) For the purposes of every general election and of any by-election, the Election Commission shall issue writs addressed to the returning officer of each constituency for which a member is to be elected.

(2) Every writ issued under subsection (1) shall be in the prescribed form and shall be returned to the Election Commission in the prescribed manner.

(3) In relation to a vacancy which is to be filled at a by-election, a writ shall be issued not earlier than four days and not later than ten days from the date on which it is established by the Election Commission that there is a vacancy.

[Am. Act A1155 - Prior text read- "In relation to a vacancy which is to be filled at a by-election, a writ shall be issued not earlier than ten days and not later than thirty days from the date on which it is established by the Election Commission that there is a vacancy."]

(4) Upon receipt of a writ issued under

13 PART V CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS-13. Election of candidates.

(1) Subject to the Election Offences Act 1954 [Act 5] , the candidate for a constituency who polls the greatest number of valid votes cast by the electors of the constituency shall be deemed to be the elected member for that constituency:

Provided that :

(a) whenever only one candidate stands nominated in any constituency the nominated candidate shall be deemed to be elected member for that constituency; and

(b) when an equality of votes is found to exist between any candidates for a constituency, and the addition of a vote would entitle one of the candidates to be elected, the determination of the candidate to whom the one additional vote shall be deemed to have been given shall be made by lot in the presence of the returning officer in such manner as he shall determine.

(2) Every person voting at an election shall cast his vote by means of a ballot paper to be marked

14 PART V CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS-14. Use of schools, and public buildings and premises as polling centres.

[Am. Act A1317]

(1) The Election Commission may use free of charge as a polling centre any school or any portion of a school in receipt of a grant, or in respect of which a grant is made, out of monies provided by any Government in Malaysia, or any other public building or premises or any portion thereof.

(2) The Election Commission shall make good any damage done to, and defray any expenses incurred by the persons having control over, any such school, building or premises or portion thereof by reason of its being used as a polling centre.

[Am. Act A1317]

15 PART VI REGULATIONS-15. Power to make regulations relating to the registration of electors.

(1) The Election Commission may with the approval of the Yang di- Pertuan Agong make regulations for the registration of electors and for all matters incidental thereto.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing powers the regulations may :

(a) prescribe the keeping and maintenance of electoral rolls in any constituency and the type and form of the electoral rolls;

[Am. Act A1155 - Prior text read- "prescribe the keeping and maintenance of electoral rolls in any constituency and the form of the electoral rolls;"]

(b) prescribe the procedure to be followed in the preparation and publication of electoral rolls;

(c) prescribe the time at which any electoral roll shall be prepared or revised and the procedure to be followed in making the revision;

(d) prescribe the procedure to be followed in the preparation and publication

16 PART VI REGULATIONS-16. Power to make regulations relating to the conduct of elections.

(1) The Election Commission may with the approval of the Yang di- Pertuan Agong make regulations for the conduct of elections to the Dewan Rakyat and the Legislative Assemblies, and for all matters incidental thereto.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing powers the regulations may :

(a) prescribe the manner in which notice of the holding of an election shall be given;

(b) prescribe the procedure for the nomination of candidates and for the making of and decision on, objections to any nomination;

(bb) provide for the procedure in the granting of approval by the Election Commission of any symbol to be used in any election:

Provided that the Election Commission shall not approve any symbol connected with any religion or sect thereof or which is otherwise incompatible with good order or morality;

(c) provide for the publication of notice of

17 PART VI REGULATIONS-17. Regulations to be laid before the Dewan Rakyat.

All regulations made under this Part shall as soon as possible after the making thereof be laid before the Dewan Rakyat, and if at the next meeting of the Dewan Rakyat after any regulations is laid before it a resolution is passed annulling the regulation or any part thereof, the whole regulation shall thenceforth be void, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder or to the making of any new regulation.