KUALA LUMPUR – An exclusive survey conducted of registered voters in Johor who did not turn out to vote in the recent state polls revealed that Barisan Nasional (BN) appears to be the strong favourite among respondents.
Conducted by the Endeavour-MGC Research Centre, the survey involved 1,069 eligible non-voters, with 38% saying that they would have voted for BN had they turned out to vote while Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) garnered the support of only 10% and 7%, respectively.
However, a significant percentage (40%) of those polled professed that they would not have cast their ballots for any of the three main political coalitions during the state election in March.
While 43% of eligible voters did not relate to any political party or coalition, 53% of all respondents approved the performance of the federal government, with 30% relating most with BN.
This is compared to just 8% identifying with PH or its three component parties and 5% sympathising with PN, Bersatu or PAS.
Nonetheless, 18% of those who expressed support for a political party or coalition were disappointed with their party of choice, with 70% of this group identifying with BN.
The survey also showed that 53% of respondents said that they will be voting in the looming 15th general election (GE15) while 40% were still on the fence.
Only 7% provided a definitive negative when asked if they will vote in the upcoming GE15.
Additionally, about two-thirds of respondents who did not purposely decide to boycott the election were either working (59%), far away from their voting centre (53%) and/or had difficulty getting to said location on polls day (60%).
While there were overlaps across the three categories, only 20% of eligible Johor voters consciously decided to pass on their chance to vote in the state polls.
Some felt jaded with politicians and political parties (37%), while others had little faith in the election process (21%) and had discounted voting having an impact on their lives (13%).
From an ethnic perspective, 58% of Chinese voters were disinterested in politics compared to 45% of Malays.
In terms of how the country is governed, Malays aged 18-39 in the M40 bracket were the most interested, while Chinese over 40 years old in the B40 group were the least interested.
Previously, in a separate survey before the state election, Endeavour-MGC had accurately predicted a landslide win for BN.
Speaking to The Vibes, Singapore Institute of International Affairs senior fellow Oh Ei Sun said that while the apparent support for BN is likely to continue towards GE15, it is not a sure-fire guarantee that the coalition will consistently have the backing of the people.
“As socioeconomic conditions worsen with the passing of time and the longer GE15 is dragged on, such support may dissipate,” he said.
He added that in the case of dwindling support for BN, other political parties should act fast to engage with the people through their own political narratives that can sway votes towards their parties.
“For PH, it could be putting more effort towards their unfinished reform agenda while PAS could focus on intensifying their theocratisation (religious rule) strategy,” he suggested. – The Vibes, July 31, 2022
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