opinion polls gave the coalition of Anwar Ibrahim in mind. But according to these polls, many voters remained undecided. If none of the formations won a clear majority, political instability could last in Malaysia.
MO12345LEMONDE with AFP and Reuters
Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of the opposition coalition in Malaysia, was in the elbow with the nasal perikatan group (National Alliance) of ex-Prime Minister Muhyidin Yassin, after the legislative elections Saturday, November 19 in Malaysia.
After the statement of votes in 202 constituencies out of 219, the Pakatan Harapan coalition (Alliance de l’Espoir) by Anwar Ibrahim, which campaigned on the theme of the fight against corruption, had 66 seats against 67 in the Périkatan naséal group of Muhyiddin Yassin, according to the electoral commission. The Barisan nasional power coalition, led by the unified national organization Malaise (Umno), was in third place.
A survey of the Merdeka Institute on the eve of the elections had given the coalition of Mr. Anwar taking 82 seats out of the 222 to be filled, 33 % of the voters granting their favor for the post of Prime Minister. Only 219 seats were finally put to the vote, two candidates having died and the ballot having been made impossible in a constituency due to the bad weather.
If none of the training won a clear majority, political instability could last in Malaysia. Anwar Ibrahim declared himself “prudently confident” about the fact that his coalition obtains the simple majority in Parliament. “A victory today would certainly be rewarding after more than two decades of struggle to win the heart and the spirit of the people,” he told the Agency France Presse before voting in the state of Penang.
Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who hoped at 97 years old to run for a return to power, was beaten in his stronghold on Langkawi Island and lost his seat in Parliament. Which should end his political career.
record participation
The ballot was marked by a record participation of the 21 million registered voters, eager to end a period of political uncertainty during which three prime ministers succeeded themselves at the head of the country in as many years, While after the shock of the Pandemic of Covid-19, Malaysia faces an economic slowdown and an outbreak of inflation. It was 70 % according to the authorities two hours before the closure of the offices, at 4 p.m. (9 a.m. in Paris).
After more than sixty years in command, the historically dominant party, the unified national organization Malaise (UMNO), was heavily sanctioned in the ballot boxes and ousted from power in 2018, marking the first alternation of the country’s history . The Prime Minister at the time Najib Razak, involved in the diversion of several billion dollars of the sovereign fund 1MDB, is currently serving a twelve -year prison sentence. The UMNO only returned to business with a small majority in 2021.
And it is in the hope of strengthening its grip on the power that Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob dissolved the Parliament and summoned early elections, initially planned in September 2023. But the historically dominant party suffers from his association With the vast case of corruption 1MDB, a fund which was to contribute to the development of the country. However, the money was diverted to, among other things, the bank account of Najib Razak.
The scandal triggered surveys in the United States, Switzerland and Singapore, where financial institutions have been used to whiten billions of dollars.