In a Facebook post, the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) man said this was based on the Election Regulations 1981.

Wan Junaidi said it would therefore be better for Ali, who is the Krian incumbent, to campaign for GPS’ candidate Friday Belik.

“If a candidate expresses his desire to withdraw, the Election Commission will still not remove his name from the list of candidates. His name will remain on the ballot paper.

“This means that if Ali were to get the most votes despite announcing his withdrawal, he can still be announced as the winner,” he said.

The Bersatu leadership had said earlier that the party would not contest in the state polls and would instead help to ensure the success of its GPS allies.

However, Ali, who is also the deputy energy and natural resources minister, appeared to break ranks by standing as an independent for the state seat he has held since 2011.

Yesterday, the Saratok MP announced that he was withdrawing from contesting the seat and would instead campaign for his GPS counterpart.