KIMANIS, Jan 18 — The Election Commission has announced Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Datuk Mohamad Alamin as the winner of the Kimanis by-election with a 2,029-vote majority.

Returning officer Jupari @Jupry Etok announced that Alamin polled 12,706 votes compared to Parti Warisan Sabah’s Datuk Karim Bujang’s 10,677 votes.

He made the announcement at the Dewan Datuk Seri Panglima Mohd Dun Banir in Beaufort at 9.30pm.

There was a total of 320 spoilt votes.

Voter turnout was also higher than expected at 79.92 per cent, ahead of the targeted 70 per cent.

Alamin is now one of two BN MPs in Sabah, aside from Kinabatangan MP Datuk Seri Bung Mokhtar Radin.

His win also means that BN and Umno have kept its streak in this south western constituency for its fifth consecutive victory since the seat was recreated in 2004.

At the tallying centre tonight for the official announcement, Alamin was accompanied by Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, deputy Datuk Mohamad Hasan, Sabah Umno chief Datuk Bung Mokhtar Radin, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak and former Kimanis MP Datuk Anifah Aman among others.

The Kimanis seat was declared vacant after the Federal Court on December 2 upheld the Election Court’s ruling, nullifying former Umno foreign minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman’s victory in the 14th General Election (GE14)  in May 2018.

In GE14, Anifah won the seat on an Umno ticket with a 156-vote majority, securing 11,942 votes against Karim’s 11,786 votes while another candidate, Jaafar Ismail of Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah, obtained 1,300 votes.

He later quit Umno in September 2018 but continued to back the party in this by-election.