FMT’s observation at the polling centre from 10am to 11am found that there were hardly any voters present.

When approached, one voter, Priya Murugam, 39, said she was surprised at the low number of voters at the polling centre, which she said was unlike the crowd seen at last year’s Selangor state election and the 15th general election in 2022.

“You would usually have to queue for a long time if you came here to vote. Maybe the voters will be coming in the afternoon,” she told FMT.

“Many people here work in plantations, so they usually work in the morning.”

A total of 39,269 voters are eligible to cast their votes at the 18 polling centres in the state constituency. The seat fell vacant after three-term assemblyman Lee Kee Hiong died on March 21 from cancer.

According to the Election Commission, the SJKT Ladang Kerling polling centre has 1,235 registered voters, the majority of whom are from the Indian community.

EC deputy chairman Azmi Sharom also told reporters at SMK Kuala Kubu Baharu the by-election’s results will only be known at 9pm at the earliest.

The Indian community, which makes up about 18% of the electorate in Kuala Kubu Baharu, can make the difference in the mixed seat, which is evenly split between Malay and non-Malay voters.

Former Penang deputy chief minister P Ramasamy, who now heads the Indian-based party Urimai, had embarked on a campaign to urge voters to boycott Pakatan Harapan’s candidate in the polls.

The former DAP assemblyman said this was to serve as a lesson to the PH-led federal government, which he believed had not fulfilled its promises to the Indian community so far.

DAP’s Pang Sock Tao, representing PH, is up against Perikatan Nasional’s Hulu Selangor Bersatu acting chief Khairul Azhari Saut, Parti Rakyat Malaysia’s Hafizah Zainuddin and independent candidate Nyau Ke Xin.

The EC reported a 38.88% voter turnout as of 1pm, five hours after polling began.