5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT MALAYSIA’S ELECTION
THE race is on. Malaysians are headed to the polls on May 9 for a crucial vote that will pit Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s Barisan Nasional against an opposition front.
Najib had on April 6 called the 14th General Election to seek a fresh five-year mandate for the multi-racial coalition that has ruled Malaysia since Merdeka in 1957.
At stake is whether BN will be able to strengthen its hold on power and thus set the direction for Malaysia in the years to come.
Najib argues only the BN can provide the strong and stable leadership and policy certainty and predictability, and build a better future for all Malaysians.
In the opposition, DAP, PKR, PPBM and PAN, which are contesting under the banner of PKR in a sign of unity, promise to “save Malaysia” from BN’s alleged misdeeds.
Pas, which was part of the opposition bloc in the 2013 general election, chose to go solo, putting up candidates in many of the three-cornered fights.
With 11 days of official campaigning until May 9, here are the key things to know about the general election:
BN leaders and some political analysts argue that the possibility of a “Malay tsunami” is very slim or none at all.
The Merdeka Centre, in a latest study, said although there could be a swing in Malay support to the opposition front in certain states such as Johor, it might not be enough to put Pakatan in power.
Pakatan needs to cross the 34 per cent-threshold to win federal power. The think tank said Pakatan’s level of Malay support is hovering at 20 per cent nationally. Pakatan has crossed the threshold only in Selangor, it said.
“But in other states, the swing is in favour of BN, like in Terengganu and Kelantan,” said programme director Ibrahim Suffian.
IN contrast, Pakatan is experiencing a reverse “Malay tsunami” with Pas having left the coalition.
In GE13, Pas, PKR and DAP garnered a combined 50.87 per cent of the popular vote.
Since DAP kicked Pas out of Pakatan Rakyat (and formed a new coalition called Pakatan Harapan that does not include Pas) PKR, DAP and Amanah now have only 36 per cent of the popular vote.
Amanah, the Pas splinter party, is struggling to win over Pas members and support. Pas alone effectively erodes some 15 per cent of Pakatan Rakyat’s popular vote.
“Killing off ” Pas by splitting it into two and by kicking the party out of the opposition coalition has certainly weakened the opposition bloc.
The inclusion of PPBM, led by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, is unlikely to match the influence and the efficient machinery of Pas.
WITH many political commentators labelling GE14 as the closest and most unpredictable in years, the battle for Putrajaya could be won or lost in the Malay heartland.
These include the 54 Felda seats and numerous rural seats, where Malays form more than 70 per cent of voters.
But lately, ethnically mixed seats — where no one race forms more than 60 per cent of voters — are also seeing tough fights.
These seats, which are traditionally BN strongholds, include Lumut, Bukit Katil, Alor Star