JOHOR BAHRU: Barisan Nasional (BN) has secured a simple majority in the Johor state election to form the state government after winning 29 of the 56 seats in the state legislative assembly.

Announcing this, Election Commission (EC) chairman Datuk Abdul Ghani Salleh said BN had won more than 50 per cent of the seats up for grabs as of 11.05 pm.

"The election process ran smoothly," he told reporters at the Persada Johor International Convention Centre here tonight.

-- BERNAMA