Komtar (state constituency)

Komtar
Penang constituency
	Komtar (olive) on Penang
State constituency
Legislature	Penang State Legislative Assembly
MLA	Teh Lai Heng; PH
;
Constituency created	2004
First contested	2004
Last contested	2023
Demographics
Electors (2023)	15,532
Area (km²)	2

Komtar is a state constituency in Penang, Malaysia, that has been represented in the Penang State Legislative Assembly since 2004. It covers George Town's city centre, including the eponymous Komtar, which houses Penang's administrative centre.

The state constituency was first contested in 2004 and is mandated to return a single Assemblyman to the Penang State Legislative Assembly under the first-past-the-post voting system. Since 2013^[update], the State Assemblyman for Komtar is Teh Lai Heng from the Democratic Action Party (DAP), which is part of the state's ruling coalition, Pakatan Harapan (PH).

Definition

Polling districts

According to the federal gazette issued on 18 July 2023, the Komtar constituency is divided into 14 polling districts.^[3]

State constituency	Polling districts	Code	Location
Komtar (N28)	Dickens Street	049/28/01	SJK (C) Hu Yew Seah
	Leboh Cintra	049/28/02	Taman Bimbingan Kanak-Kanak (Tabika) Nurul Islam
	Kampung Kolam	049/28/03	Pusat Belia Lebuh Acheh
	Leboh Acheh	049/28/04	Pusat Belia Lebuh Acheh
	Leboh Melayu	049/28/05	SK Tan Sri P. Ramlee
	Hong Kong Street	049/28/06	George Town World Heritage Inc
	Komtar	049/28/07	Tapak Landskap B, Prangin Mall
	Madras Lane	049/28/08	SJK (C) Hu Yew Seah
	Jalan Timah	049/28/09	SK Tan Sri P. Ramlee
	Jalan Lines	049/28/10	SK Tan Sri P. Ramlee
	Jalan Dato' Kramat	049/28/11	The Penang Buddhist Association Kindergarten
	Irving Road	049/28/12	Pusat Kegiatan Guru Kelawai
	Jalan Pahang	049/28/13	The Penang Buddhist Association Kindergarten
	Jalan Kim Bian Aik	049/28/14	Persatuan Leong See Kah Miew

This state seat encompasses the heart of George Town's city centre, including Komtar Tower, Penang's tallest skyscraper and the administrative centre for the entire State of Penang.^[4] The Office of the Chief Minister of Penang is housed within Komtar as well. In addition, the Komtar constituency covers a significant portion of George Town's UNESCO World Heritage Site, specifically the area between Transfer Road to the west and Beach Street to the east, and between Campbell Street to the north and Prangin Road to the south.

The major landmarks within the constituency include Chowrasta Market, Campbell Street Market and Acheen Street Mosque, all of which are within the city centre's UNESCO Site. The shopping district within the vicinity of Komtar, which includes 1st Avenue Mall, Prangin Mall and Penang Times Square, are also within the Komtar state seat.

The constituency is bounded to the north by Macalister Road, Jalan Zainal Abidin (formerly Yahudi Road), Burmah Road, Transfer Road, Campbell Street and a short section of Armenian Street, to the east by a section of Beach Street, Carnavon Street, Magazine Road and Brick Kiln Road, to the south by a short section of the Pinang River and Dato Keramat Road, and to the west by Jalan Perak.

Demographics

Ethnic breakdown of Komtar's electorate as of 2023^[5]

Chinese (77.75%)

Malay (12.22%)

Indian (8.87%)

Other ethnicities (1.16%)

Total electors by polling district in 2016
Polling district	Electors
Dickens Street	1,642
Irving Road	1,227
Hong Kong Street	903
Jalan Dato' Keramat	1,044
Jalan Kim Bian Aik	1,248
Jalan Lines	1,349
Jalan Pahang	1,523
Jalan Timah	819
Kampong Kolam	906
Komtar	189
Leboh Acheh	1,156
Leboh Cintra	1,075
Leboh Melayu	1,022
Madras Lane	1,441
Total	15,544
Source: Malaysian Election Commission^[6]

History

Penang State Legislative Assemblyman for Komtar
Assembly	Years	Member	Party
Constituency created from Kampong Kolam
11th	2004 – 2008	Lim Gim Soon	BN (MCA)
12th	2008 – 2013	Ng Wei Aik	PR (DAP)
13th	2013 – 2018	Teh Lai Heng	PR (DAP)
14th	2018 – 2023		PH (DAP)
15th	2023 – present		PH (DAP)

Election results

The electoral results for the Komtar state constituency in 2008, 2013 and 2018 are as follows.

Penang state election, 2023
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	∆%
	PH	Teh Lai Heng	9,279	86.61	2.01
	PN	Cheah Kim Huat	1,435	13.39	13.39
Total valid votes			10,714	100.00
Total rejected ballots			93
Unreturned ballots			17
Turnout			10,824	69.69	10.51
Registered electors			15,532
Majority			7,844	73.22	3.22
	PH hold		Swing

Penang state election, 2018
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	∆%
	Pakatan Harapan (2018)	Teh Lai Heng	10,113	84.60	84.60
	BN	Tan Hing Teik	1,750	14.60	4.70
	Malaysian United Party	Ong Chun Jiet	85	0.80	0.80
Total valid votes			11,948	100.00
Total rejected ballots			98
Unreturned ballots			13
Turnout			12,059	80.20	2.60
Registered electors			15,041
Majority			8,363	70.00	8.80
	Pakatan Harapan (2018) hold		Swing
Source(s) "His Majesty's Government Gazette - Notice of Contested Election, State Legislative Assembly for the State of Penang [P.U. (B) 252/2018]" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 2018-08-01.^{[permanent dead link‍]} "Federal Government Gazette - Results of Contested Election and Statements of the Poll after the Official Addition of Votes, State Constituencies for the State of Penang [P.U. (B) 326/2018]" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia. 28 May 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-08-29. Retrieved 2018-08-01.

Penang state election, 2013
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	∆%
	DAP	Teh Lai Heng	10,669	80.50	16.50
	BN	Loh Chye Teik	2,555	19.30	16.70
	Love Malaysia Party	Liew Yeow Hooi	25	0.20	0.20
Total valid votes			13,249	100.00
Total rejected ballots			107
Unreturned ballots			8
Turnout			13,364	82.80	11.30
Registered electors			16,132
Majority			8,114	61.20	33.20
	DAP hold		Swing
Source(s) "Federal Government Gazette - Notice of Contested Election, State Legislative Assembly for the State of Penang [P.U. (B) 189/2013]" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia. 26 April 2013. Retrieved 2016-05-21.^{[permanent dead link‍]} "Federal Government Gazette - Results of Contested Election and Statements of the Poll after the Official Addition of Votes, State Constituencies for the State of Penang [P.U. (B) 230/2013]" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia. 22 May 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-03-22. Retrieved 2016-05-21.

Penang state election, 2008
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	∆%
	DAP	Ng Wei Aik	7,610	64.00
	BN	Lim Gim Soon	4,282	36.00
Total valid votes			11,182	100.00
Total rejected ballots			203
Unreturned ballots			40
Turnout			12,135	71.50
Registered electors			16,976
Majority			3,328	28.00
	DAP gain from BN		Swing		?

Penang state election, 2004
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	BN	Lim Gim Soon	7,732	62.03
	DAP	Teh Lai Heng	4,732	37.97
Total valid votes			12,464	100.00
Total rejected ballots			222
Unreturned ballots			0
Turnout			12,686	67.45
Registered electors			18,809
Majority			3,000
This is a new created constituency

References

"Keputusan Pilihan Raya Suruhanjaya Pilihan Raya". Election Commission of Malaysia. Archived from the original on 2016-04-24. Retrieved 2016-05-21.

^ "Electoral Roll for the 14th Malaysian General Election Updated as of 10 April 2018" (PDF) (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. 2018-04-16. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-04-25. Retrieved 2018-04-25.
^ Laporan Kajian Semula Persempadanan Mengenai Syor-Syor Yang Dicadangkan Bagi Bahagian-Bahagian Pilihan Raya Persekutuan Dan Negeri Di Dalam Negeri-Negeri Tanah Melayu Kali Keenam Tahun 2018 Jilid 1 (PDF) (Report) (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. 2018. Retrieved 2018-04-15.
^ "Federal Government Gazette, Notice Under Subregulation 11(5A) Polling Hours For the General Eelection of the Legislative Assembly of the State of Penang" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers. 15 July 2023.
^ "Story Map Journal". Retrieved 2017-04-22.
^ "15th Penang State Election - Results Overview". live.chinapress.com. Retrieved 2023-08-13.
^ "Report on the Redelineation of Electoral Constituencies in Peninsular Malaysia in 2018" (PDF). Election Commission of Malaysia. 1. 2018.

[1] "Electoral Roll for the 14th Malaysian General Election Updated as of 10 April 2018" (PDF) (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. 2018-04-16. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-04-25. Retrieved 2018-04-25.

[2] Laporan Kajian Semula Persempadanan Mengenai Syor-Syor Yang Dicadangkan Bagi Bahagian-Bahagian Pilihan Raya Persekutuan Dan Negeri Di Dalam Negeri-Negeri Tanah Melayu Kali Keenam Tahun 2018 Jilid 1 (PDF) (Report) (in Malay). Election Commission of Malaysia. 2018. Retrieved 2018-04-15.

[3] "Federal Government Gazette, Notice Under Subregulation 11(5A) Polling Hours For the General Eelection of the Legislative Assembly of the State of Penang" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers. 15 July 2023.

[4] "Story Map Journal". Retrieved 2017-04-22.

[5] "15th Penang State Election - Results Overview". live.chinapress.com. Retrieved 2023-08-13.

[2018report2-6] "Report on the Redelineation of Electoral Constituencies in Peninsular Malaysia in 2018" (PDF). Election Commission of Malaysia. 1. 2018.

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