His candidacy was announced by PAS deputy president Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man who said the party needed to continue its “grand agenda not only at the state level but also at the parliamentary level”. Last month, FMT was told by political sources that Samsuri may be proposed by the party leadership to bolster the opposition’s voice in Parliament.

PAS has 42 seats in the 222-member Dewan Rakyat, while Bersatu, its partner in Perikatan Nasional, holds 27 seats.

Samsuri, 53, a former lecturer with a degree in aerospace engineering, is the state assemblyman for Ru Redang and a former aide to PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang.

His rival in the by-election will be Barisan Nasional candidate Raja Affandi Raja Noor, a retired army general.

The Kemaman by-election was called following an election court decision on Sept 26 which annulled the victory of PAS candidate Che Alias Hamid in the November 2022 general election. The election court held that the distribution of government aid to voters during the campaign period constituted election bribery.

Che Alias had won with a majority of 27,179 votes against Terengganu Umno chairman and former menteri besar Ahmad Said, Rosli Ab Ghani (Pejuang) and Hasuni Sudin (Pakatan Harapan).

Nomination day for the by-election is Nov 18, with polling day on Dec 2.

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