Sabah state election 2025
Sabah voted on 29 November 2025 and returned no single coalition with a majority, leaving Chief Minister Hajiji Noor to assemble a government from several parties and independents in the hours after the count.
What happened
Sabah went to the polls on 29 November 2025 in the state's 17th general election, seven weeks after the assembly was dissolved on 6 October. All 73 elected seats were up; the Assembly may also include up to six nominated members. The field was crowded: every seat drew at least six contestants, and some drew ten or eleven. The three main blocs entered separately:
- Gabungan Rakyat Sabah
- in alliance with Pakatan Harapan
- Barisan Nasional
- standing on its own under Bung Moktar Radin
- Warisan
- contesting alone under Mohd Shafie Apdal
No party or coalition won a majority of the elected seats:
- GRS
- 29 seats
- Warisan
- 25
- BN
- 6
- Independents
- five
- Upko
- three
- STAR
- two
- KDM
- one
- Perikatan Nasional
- one
- Pakatan Harapan
- one
Final turnout was 64.35% — 1,148,476 votes from an electorate of 1,784,843 — against the 66.61% recorded in 2020; the commission had forecast around 60% on the day.
Government formation happened quickly and, at first, opaquely. Hajiji Noor, who retained Sulaman, was sworn in for a second term in the early hours of 30 November before the Yang di-Pertua Negri, Musa Aman, at Istana Seri Kinabalu, on a claimed backing of 37 elected assemblypersons from GRS, Upko, Pakatan Harapan and five independents.
Malay Mail reported the same day that it remained unclear which parties had actually pledged support beyond Upko, which was said to have set a condition that the government be formed with Sabah-based parties.
By early January 2026 Malay Mail reported the bloc had widened to 45 elected seats including BN and a STAR assemblyman, with three deputy chief ministers appointed and the SMJ 2.0 development plan carried forward. That wider arrangement is reported rather than confirmed here.
BN's representation in the elected Assembly did not change after its chairman Bung Moktar Radin died on 5 December 2025: Mohd Ismail Ayob retained Lamag for BN at the 24 January 2026 by-election, with a 5,681-vote majority.
The election ran against a corruption case that had been building for a year:
- December 2024Videos published by Malaysiakini, allegedly recorded by businessman Albert Tei, implicated assemblymen in bribery over mineral prospecting licences.
- February 2025MACC said the original videos showed signs of editing.
- 30 June 2025Two state politicians and Tei were charged.
Hajiji has denied wrongdoing throughout, and the charges remain allegations before the courts.
Writing in December 2024, Arnold Puyok of ISEAS argued that scandal has historically moved Sabah voters less than patronage and cost-of-living concerns. Whether it moved them this time is not settled.
For federal politics, the clearest signals are in the numbers rather than in any settled interpretation. BN finished with six seats and Pakatan Harapan with one, while Warisan, standing alone, became the largest opposition bloc with 25.
Free Malaysia Today's post-election analysis called BN's showing its worst in Sabah in decades and PH's a wake-up call, and attributed Warisan's urban gains partly to Chinese voters moving away from DAP and PKR; those are that outlet's readings, not verdicts. What this means for seat-sharing among the same parties at the next federal election remains an open question.
What the sources say
Nomination closed with 596 candidates contesting the 73 Sabah state seats.
Sabah’s official December 2025 cabinet announcement identified a GRS-led administration with one BN minister, one Pakatan Harapan minister and one Upko minister; the Chief Minister’s office also listed a STAR assistant minister.
The vote itself
The 17th Sabah state election was held on 29 November 2025, contesting 73 elected state constituencies, after the State Legislative Assembly was dissolved on 6 October 2025.
56.78% voter turnout in Sabah polls as of 3pmFull official results of the 17th Sabah election
The Assembly has 73 elected members and may also include up to six nominated members appointed by the Yang di-Pertua Negeri; it is therefore not simply a 73-member assembly.
On the Election Commission's official count the seats fell as follows: Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) 29, Warisan 25, Barisan Nasional (BN) 6, independents 5, Upko 3, STAR 2, and one each for KDM, Perikatan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan.
No coalition or party won a majority of the 73 elected seats on its own; GRS, with 29, was the largest bloc.
The electorate numbered 1,784,843 registered voters. Final turnout was 1,148,476 votes cast, or 64.35%.
On polling day itself the Election Commission reported 31.3% turnout at 11am and 56.78% (989,551 votes cast) as at 3pm, with most polling centres closing at 5pm.
EC chairman Ramlan Harun said turnout stood at 31.3% at 11am, slightly below the 32% recorded at the same hour in GE15, and that the commission expected a final figure of about 60%; turnout at the 2020 Sabah state election was 66.61%.
Sabah polls: 31.3% voter turnout as of 11amFree Malaysia Today
The Election Commission recorded 603 offences during the 14-day campaign period, including 81 police reports and five cases referred to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission.
The contest was unusually crowded: reporting before polling described at least six parties or individuals standing in every seat, with several constituencies facing ten- or eleven-cornered fights.
Who's who in Sabah's packed election race as Nomination Day heats up
Who contested
GRS, chaired by Hajiji Noor, contested in alliance with Pakatan Harapan; BN, led in Sabah by Bung Moktar Radin, contested separately; and Warisan, led by Mohd Shafie Apdal, contested alone.
STAR and SAPP contested on a "Sabah for Sabahans" platform outside both the GRS and BN blocs, and Perikatan Nasional had only a limited direct presence.
Government formation
Hajiji Noor retained his Sulaman seat and was sworn in as Chief Minister for a second term in the early hours of 30 November 2025 before the Yang di-Pertua Negri, Musa Aman, at Istana Seri Kinabalu.
At the time of the swearing-in, the reported backing was 37 elected assemblypersons, made up of GRS plus Upko, Pakatan Harapan and five independents.
Warisan won 25 seats but did not gather enough support to form the state government.
Three deputy chief ministers were appointed under the new administration: Joachim Gunsalam (PBS), Masidi Manjun (GRS secretary-general) and Ewon Benedick (Upko president), with the cabinet tasked with continuing the Hala Tuju Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) 2.0 development plan.
BN chairman and Lamag assemblyman Bung Moktar Radin died on 5 December 2025. In the Lamag by-election on 24 January 2026, BN's Mohd Ismail Ayob won with a majority of 5,681 votes over Warisan's Mazliwati Abdul Malek, retaining the elected seat for BN.
The corruption case in the background
Videos allegedly recorded by businessman Albert Tei, published by Malaysiakini in December 2024, implicated state assemblymen in bribery connected to mineral prospecting licences; in February 2025 MACC said forensic analysis of the original videos showed "elements of enhancement, editing and other alterations."
On 30 June 2025, months before the election, state assistant minister Andi Suryady Bandy, assemblyman Dr Yusof Yacob and Albert Tei were charged in court, Andi Suryady over RM150,000 and Yusof over RM200,000.
Where accounts differ
At least one election petition concerning Sindumin was gazetted, but no complete seat-by-seat public record of petitions and their outcomes was located.
As of 22 January 2026, the Sessions Court had fixed a consolidated six-day trial in June for the cases against Andi Muhammad Suryady Bandy and Yusof Yacob; both had pleaded not guilty.
The exact composition of the majority backing Hajiji was not clear on the night. Malay Mail reported on 30 November 2025 that Upko was "believed to be among the parties backing Hajiji," reportedly on condition the government be formed exclusively with Sabah-based parties, and that beyond this "there has been no clarity on who else may have pledged support."
Sources differ on Upko's contribution to the initial 37. The Star's account of the swearing-in counts Upko as two seats within the majority, while the Election Commission tally credits Upko with three seats won. This has not been reconciled in the reporting retrieved.
The wider shape of the government afterwards is reported but not confirmed here from a second source: Malay Mail reported on 5 January 2026 that GRS had reached 45 seats with backing from PH (1), Upko (3), BN (6), the five independents and STAR's Mohd Ishak Ayub (Bingkor). Whether that arrangement has held since is not established.
Free Malaysia Today's post-election analysis characterised BN's six seats as its "worst electoral outing in Sabah in decades," described a DAP wipeout and PKR losses as a "wake-up call" for Pakatan Harapan, and said Warisan captured urban seats with a swing of Chinese voters away from DAP and PKR. These are that outlet's characterisations, published without attribution to named analysts.
Before the election, Arnold Puyok of ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute wrote (18 December 2024) that "controversies involving politicians in Sabah rarely cause major political upheaval," arguing patronage and bread-and-butter concerns usually outweigh scandal, and that GRS's exposure depended on whether the opposition could mobilise around the issue. Whether the scandal moved votes in November 2025 is not settled.
Hajiji has consistently denied the accusations arising from the videos, and MACC's questioning of him did not link him to the recordings. The charges against Andi Suryady Bandy, Yusof Yacob and Albert Tei are allegations before the courts.
Common questions
What happened in Sabah’s 2025 state election?
Sabah held its 17th state election on 29 November 2025, contesting all 73 elected state constituencies after the State Legislative Assembly was dissolved on 6 October. The contest drew 596 candidates, and no party or coalition won a majority of the elected seats. GRS emerged as the largest bloc with 29 seats, followed by Warisan with 25.
How many seats did each party win in Sabah?
GRS won 29 seats and Warisan won 25. BN won six, independents won five, Upko won three and STAR won two. KDM, Perikatan Nasional and Pakatan Harapan each won one seat. These figures are the Election Commission’s official party tally as reported by Malay Mail; a separate Malay Mail report also lists the same distribution.
Did any party win enough seats to govern alone?
No. No party or coalition won a majority of the 73 elected seats on its own, although GRS was the largest bloc with 29 seats. Hajiji Noor was sworn in as Chief Minister after the election with reported backing from 37 elected assemblypersons drawn from GRS, Upko, Pakatan Harapan and five independents.
Who became Sabah chief minister after the election?
Hajiji Noor became Chief Minister after retaining his Sulaman seat and being sworn in for a second term in the early hours of 30 November 2025. The ceremony took place before the Yang di-Pertua Negeri, Musa Aman, at Istana Seri Kinabalu. At the time, The Star reported backing from 37 elected assemblypersons.
Why was Sabah’s new government hard to pin down at first?
The exact composition of Hajiji’s initial majority was not clear on the night he was sworn in. Malay Mail reported that Upko was believed to be among the parties backing him, reportedly on condition that the government be formed exclusively with Sabah-based parties, while also reporting no clarity about who else had pledged support. By January 2026, Malay Mail reported a wider bloc of 45 elected seats, including BN and a STAR assemblyman.
What happened to Bung Moktar’s Lamag seat?
After BN chairman and Lamag assemblyman Bung Moktar Radin died on 5 December 2025, a by-election was held on 24 January 2026. BN’s Mohd Ismail Ayob won with a majority of 5,681 votes over Warisan’s Mazliwati Abdul Malek, retaining the elected seat for BN.
Still open
- The precise minute of the swearing-in: The Star reports 3.05am and Malay Mail 3.11am on 30 November 2025.
- What is KDM’s formal alignment, and what is the current formal composition of the state administration after January 2026?
- What became of the June 2026 trial involving Andi Muhammad Suryady Bandy and Yusof Yacob, and what is the current status of Albert Tei’s case?