7 things to know about Malaysia GE2022

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia will go to the polls on Saturday, with a record number of contenders slugging it out in multi-cornered battles across the country and the outcome expected to be too close to call.

Here are seven things to know about Malaysia’s 15th General Election.

1. Race to be PM 

On paper, there are three candidates in the running: the prime ministerial nominees of the country’s three main national alliances – Barisan Nasional (BN), Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Perikatan Nasional (PN).

BN has repeatedly touted caretaker PM Ismail Sabri Yaakob, an Umno vice-president, to head the government if the coalition wins, while PN’s top leader and former premier Muhyiddin Yassin is also eyeing the top job.

PH’s Anwar Ibrahim is the coalition’s pick for PM. And then there is a dark horse: BN chief Zahid Hamidi, who is the only one not slated by his colleagues to be premier after the polls as a graft trial hangs over his head.

2. Battles to watch 

Tiny Perlis, with only three parliamentary wards, is shaping up to be one of the states to watch as BN, which has ruled the place since Independence, risked losing the northern state after it axed influential Umno warlord Shahidan Kassim from its candidate list in this election, and he opted to contest for rival PN.

Another tough fight is in Perak, which has 24 constituencies and is an important testing ground for both rural Malay votes and multiracial urban votes. Both Zahid and Datuk Seri Anwar are facing tricky battles in their constituencies, and the outcome here will prove indicative of how their coalitions perform in the rest of the country.

Zahid will be defending his seat in the Bagan Datuk parliamentary ward against an onslaught from PH’s Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin who believed he stands a good chance of unseating the Umno president from his home turf.

For Anwar, his star presence means he continues to attract huge crowds during his hustings, but he has staked his political career on an uphill battle to unseat popular incumbent Ahmad Faizal Azumu from the Tambun parliamentary seat in Perak.

3. Who are the candidates 

A record 108 independent candidates are contesting in the polls despite the odds, a sign of growing discontentment among the electorate over how internal politicking among the country’s key parties has led to instability in the past few years.

One candidate that stood out has been Parti Keadilan Rakyat’s Noraishah Mydin Abdul Aziz, Malaysia’s first female disabled election candidate, who is taking on Umno stalwart Tengku Adnan Mansor in the Putrajaya ward. She said her top priorities are to be the voice for disenfranchised Malaysians and to address the socio-economic disparity.

Another candidate to watch is BN’s Khairy Jamaluddin, who is facing six contenders in the hot seat of Sungai Buloh, Selangor. The incumbent health minister is a newcomer to the opposition stronghold, and it is not yet certain if his charisma and charm is enough to win over voters.

4. Youth power 

More than four million youth, representing one-fifth of the electorate, will be voting for the first time in this election. Given their size and the lack of voting trends, analysts say they could influence the outcome of the election.

Studies have shown that this cohort of Internet-savvy voters have other key concerns, and seem less interested in the race and religious rhetoric often employed by politicians.

In a bid to woo these voters, many election candidates have jumped on the TikTok bandwagon, with PN campaigning aggressively on this platform via social influencers.

5. Rain, rain go away 

Rainy weather in parts of Malaysia has not just cast a dampener on hustings, but has also renewed public anger against the caretaker government for holding the polls during monsoon season.

Thousands of people had to be evacuated to temporary relief centres when the north-east monsoon hit the country this week. The floods have prompted some candidates in Selangor to suspend their campaigning and head to the flood-hit areas.

The meteorological department has warned that there will be rain and thunderstorms in most states on Polling Day on Saturday.

6. Voter turnout 

The level of interest to vote is high, according to a survey, easing earlier concerns of a low turnout.

A higher electorate turnout, especially of outstation or overseas voters who are more likely to vote against the incumbent administration, is crucial for opposition candidates, as it can swing the outcome.

Malaysian activists have come together to help out-of-town voters cast their ballots by subsidising travel costs, arranging carpools and preparing relief efforts in the event of floods.

However, in some places like Ipoh in the state of Perak, election fever remained cool, with locals saying they are jaded by recent power plays between the main political parties, and its outstation voters indicating that they are not inclined to return to vote.

7. It’s a numbers game

Polling data has shown that BN’s rivals PH and PN’s support and popularity are on the rise, calling into question BN’s internal projections of at least 80 wins in the 222-seat Parliament – and its desired clout as the largest single coalition.

BN also appears to be dragged down by its chairman Zahid, whose unpopularity is proving to be a liability that a disjointed and poorly funded campaign has been unable to overcome.

It will not be a walk in the park for all, with the tight races in many seats making the outcomes hard to tell at this point.

However, this has not stopped all three coalitions from claiming that they will have the numbers to form a simple majority of 112 in Parliament.

Still, whoever wins after Nov 19 will have to quickly tackle issues related to the economy and rising cost of living, which are a chief concern among Malaysians.