KULIM – Young voters from the Undi18 segment were the ones who shunned Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the Padang Serai election, Kedah PH chairman Datuk Mahfuz Omar said.
Besides the surge in their numbers, PH had also been unable to convey the right message to them and could not effectively deal with the number of fake claims and attacks made by Perikatan Nasional (PN), he told The Vibes.
“We were afraid going in, as there was a surge in voter registration in Padang Serai. Some 30% of the over 133,000 registered voters were first-time voters.
PN’s win in Padang Serai yesterday was in line with the “green wave” seen in the 15th general election (GE15), where the coalition surprisingly swept 74 parliamentary seats, higher than predicted by analysts and pollsters. This makes it the second largest bloc in Parliament, after PH which won 82 seats.
PN candidate Datuk “Cikgu” Azman Nasrudin won the seat in a six-cornered fight with a 16,260-vote majority to wrest the PH stronghold. Through PKR, PH had held the seat for three terms since 2008 with sizeable majorities.
Observers note the result will make the upcoming Kedah and Penang elections a challenge for the new PH-led unity government.
The three PAS-led state governments – Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu – opted not to hold state elections concurrently with parliamentary polls for GE15. The PH-led states of Penang, Selangor, and Negri Sembilan also decided similarly.
Throughout the GE15 campaigning period, PN had presented itself to voters as a “clean” alternative to the “corrupt” Barisan Nasional (BN), and as morally superior to PH.
It was a point Azman repeated last night after his victory, saying PN supporters do not support the new cabinet comprising BN lawmakers because those facing corruption cases in court were appointed, in reference to Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
“As Muslims, we cannot accept such a government formation. We want a clean one,” he said.
PN’s choice of Azman was also a strategic one and contributed to his win, as he is familiar and known among voters here, who are mainly from the working class segment.
He is also assemblyman for Lunas, a state seat within the Padang Serai federal constituency. He was born here and had taught in schools within the locality. For the election, his house in his village was converted into the main election headquarters for PN.
Azman also has leadership stature, being a former state PKR leader before he defected to Bersatu, which is part of PN, in 2020 after a fallout with PKR leaders.
Another factor cited as reason for PH’s loss is the withdrawal of BN’s Datuk C. Sivarraajh from the race barely a week before polling yesterday, and many BN supporters were unaware of his move to give way to PH’s Mohamad Sofee Razak. – The Vibes, December 8, 2022
