A reader wrote to us:

“If a Malaysian registers to vote today, can he/she participate in the upcoming elections? I have looked at the election commission’s website and searched Google but have not got an answer yet. What I do know is that we can register to vote at any time/any day at the post office. What I want to find out is the cut off date to register to vote for next month’s elections.”

The answer is no. Only Malaysians registered in the last revised, confirmed and gazetted electoral roll are eligible to vote.

As we mentioned in Part 1 of our Election FAQ on How do elections work in Malaysia?:

“The revised electoral rolls are prepared every three months and displayed for seven days for claims and objections.”

“After considering the claims and objections through public enquiry, the electoral rolls for that year will be confirmed by the commission within a month. During revision of the main roll, the names of deceased electors and those that have been disqualified under the law are supposed to be expunged from the roll.”

According to news reports, the Election Commission gazetted the 2007 Master Electoral Roll on 5 February 2008. This roll included voters who had registered up to 31 December 2007.

[Note: The MalaysiaVotes.com team will try our best to attend to your queries regarding the elections, subject to our minimal staff and resources.]