Johor state polls: PM Anwar’s PH coalition unveils candidates, including former education minister Maszlee Malik

JOHOR BAHRU: Malaysia’s former education minister Maszlee Malik was among the 56 candidates unveiled by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition on Monday (Jun 22) for the upcoming Johor state polls.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also the coalition’s chairman, announced the line-up at Padang Bukit Gambir in Tangkak.

The slate features a mix of new faces and experienced leaders from PH’s component parties - Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Democratic Action Party (DAP) and Parti Amanah Rakyat (Amanah) - local media reported.

Although Anwar has yet to name the coalition’s chief minister candidate, Maszlee - who is among the candidates with the biggest profile owing to his previous stint as a Cabinet minister - has emerged as one of the frontrunners for the post, according to local media reports.

Maszlee, who will contest the Puteri Wangsa state seat, served as Malaysia's education minister during PH’s first administration under former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad from 2018 to 2020.

He was also a Member of Parliament for Simpang Renggam after winning the constituency in the 2018 general election.

However, Maszlee failed to retain the seat after losing to former Johor chief minister Hasni Mohammad of Barisan Nasional (BN) during the 15th General Election in November 2022.

Prior to that, he was defeated in the Layang-Layang state constituency during the previous Johor state polls in March 2022.

A poll conducted by local media outlet Sinar Harian on three PH candidates found that netizens favoured Maszlee as the coalition’s choice for Johor chief minister.

He was pitted against two leaders from Amanah - Johor Amanah chairman Aminolhuda Hassan and deputy chairman Suhaizan Kayat.

The poll was conducted across YouTube, X, Facebook and Instagram.

Maszlee has dismissed speculations linking him to the chief minister’s post should PH sweep to power in Johor, saying that he and Anwar “have never discussed it at all”, reported the New Straits Times (NST).

The Puteri Wangsa state seat is currently held by Amira Aisya Abdul Aziz of the Malaysia United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) party. Originally allocated to Amanah, the seat was loaned to MUDA under a political cooperation agreement during the 2022 Johor election.

MUDA will be contesting on its own in the upcoming state polls.

Amira, who is also the party’s president, has announced that she will not defend her Puteri Wangsa state seat, with Rashifa Aljuneid named as MUDA’s candidate instead.

In a statement over the weekend, MUDA has said that the Puteri Wangsa seat holds a special place in the party’s history as it was where the party secured its first electoral victory in 2022.

Other notable PH candidates for the Johor state election include Batu Pahat MP Onn Abu Bakar, Pulai MP Suhaizan Kayat of Amanah and Johor PKR Youth chief Faezuddin Puad, local news outlet Free Malaysia Today reported.

Onn has been named the coalition’s candidate for Senggarang while Faezuddin will stand in Kempas. Suhaizan - who is a former speaker of the Johor legislative assembly - has been fielded in Larkin.

According to the NST, PH’s electoral line-up reflects a clearly segmented strategy, with DAP allocated 17 seats focused largely on urban strongholds, PKR taking the largest share with 29 constituencies as the main contesting force across mixed and swing areas, while Amanah is fielded in 10 Malay-majority seats concentrated in the southern and rural constituencies.

Also present at the candidate announcement on Monday night were Amanah president Mohamad Sabu and DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook.

In his speech, Loke said that a victory in Johor was crucial for the federal government’s stability.

“If we want Anwar to continue as prime minister, we need PH to win in Johor,” he said, adding that the state’s economy grew partly due to the federal government.

The Johor state polls will be held on Jul 11, with nomination day set for Jun 27.

All three major coalitions - BN, PH and Perikatan Nasional (PN) - have announced that they would contest all 56 seats. Currently, 40 of these seats are held by BN, 12 by PH, three by PN and one by MUDA.

Although aligned with PH at the federal level, BN and PH are rivals at the state level in Johor.

The state polls in Johor could potentially see four-cornered fights, with newly relaunched Parti Bersama Malaysia (Bersama) - helmed by two former federal ministers Rafizi Ramli and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad - announcing that their party would enter the race.

Bersama has announced that it will contest 15 state seats, more than half of which were won by BN in the last polls.

The Johor state election also comes amid strains within PN, after component party Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) announced that it has ended its political cooperation with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu).

At an emergency meeting on the coalition’s membership on Monday, PN chairman Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar said that the coalition has accepted two new political parties - Parti Pejuang Tanah Air and Parti Cinta Malaysia.

The coalition will be finalising its seat allocation for the upcoming Johor state polls on Tuesday.