YAN, Oct 23 — It will be a straight fight between Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Dr Ahmad Sohaimi Lazim and PAS candidate Mohd Azam Samat for the Sungai Limau state seat in Yan, Kedah.

Both candidates submitted their nomination papers at around 9am today.

Nominations closed at around 10am and Election Commission (EC) returning officer Abdul Rashid Othman announced it was a straight fight between the BN and PAS candidates shortly after the nominations closed, at about 10.30am.

Thousands of supporters from both sides turned up at about 8.30am as they marched alongside their respective candidates to the nomination centre at Datuk Madi Hall here.

PAS president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang is confident that PAS will retain the seat that was vacated after former Kedah Mentri Besar Tan Sri Azizan Abdul Razak passed away on September 26.

“We are certain that voters here will continue to support PAS as they have supported us in May 5 polls,” he said when met outside the nomination centre.

He added that the PAS candidate picked is still young but he had served the people and was once Azizan’s assistant.

“He will work hard to get more majority votes this time,” he said.

Azizan had garnered 2,774 majority votes with a total 13,294 votes against BN’s Mohd Fazillah Mohd Ali who garnered 10,520 votes during the general elections in May.

Hadi alleged that BN will use the media and money politics to fish for more votes but he believed loyal supporters would continue to vote for PAS.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said both the Kedah Mentri Besar Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak are committed to develop Sungai Limau.

He urged voters to make the right choice as BN could bring development to the small village.

“Dr Ahmad Sohaimi is a good candidate and he is also committed to bringing development to Sungai Limau so voters should give him a chance,” he said after nomination closed this morning.

He warned voters that PAS would raise issues like the Budget, which will be announced on Friday, the government service tax (GST) and the price of paddy during the campaign.

“This by-election will give BN the opportunity to go down to the ground to explain our side of these issues,” he said.

He told voters to vote wisely and that even if BN were to win this by-election, there will not be any change in state government as it is already a BN state government.

More than 27,000 voters will be voting for their Sungai Limau state assemblyman on November 4 here.