A Penang PKR leader, who wished to remain anonymous, said Nurhidayah is the main choice despite losing the same seat to Perikatan Nasional’s Nor Zamri Latiff by a majority of 1,563 votes in the state election last August.

Zamri died last Friday at the Seberang Jaya Hospital in Penang from stomach inflammation.

The Election Commission is scheduled to meet on June 6 to set the dates for nominations and voting.

“Nurhidayah is the frontrunner, but the Nibong Tebal branch chief is also said to be interested (in contesting the seat). The PKR leadership is considering it,” the source told FMT.

Amar Pritpal held the seat from 2018 to 2023, but was replaced by Nurhidayah in the state election.

Penang PKR Youth chief Fadzli Roslan said there is no issue with the party fielding a “recycled” candidate if it decides to go with Nurhidayah again.

“I think the issue of a shortage of candidates is not the main problem because PKR has many leaders to contest in Sungai Bakap. Regardless of who it is, we will strive to win,” he said.

Fadzli is also confident that the close cooperation within the unity government components can help PH reclaim the seat from PN, considering their victory in previous by-elections, including in Kuala Kubu Baharu earlier this month.

Sungai Bakap is part of the Nibong Tebal federal constituency, which also includes the Jawi and Sungai Acheh state seats, held by PH and Barisan Nasional, respectively. Education minister Fadhlina Sidek is the Nibong Tebal MP.

According to EC data from the 2023 state election, the seat has 38,409 voters with the majority being Malays (59.36%), followed by Chinese (22.54%), Indians (17.39%) and others (0.71%).