Malaysia’s Johor election campaign begins as federal allies clash

Malaysia’s southern Johor state was braced for a bruising 14-day election campaign on Saturday after 172 candidates were cleared to contest a poll pitting Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s federal allies against each other in one of the country’s most economically important battlegrounds.

The state, which borders Singapore, goes to the polls on July 11, with 2.72 million voters eligible to choose representatives for 56 seats. Analysts said the contest would test both the reach of federal partners Barisan Nasional (BN) and Pakatan Harapan (PH), and the opposition’s relevance in Malaysia’s industrial south.

More than a dozen parties and six independents were cleared on nomination day, producing 14 straight fights, 27 three-cornered contests, 12 four-cornered battles and three five-way races. The Election Commission said no applications were rejected statewide during nominations, which closed at 10am after candidates filed papers at 56 centres across Johor.

BN and PH sit together in Anwar’s unity government in Putrajaya, but in Johor they are contesting every seat against each other, turning a state poll into a controlled fight between federal partners.

Umno-led BN, the former ruling coalition that dominated Malaysian politics for six decades, is defending the 40 seats it held before the state assembly was dissolved on June 1. PH, Anwar’s multiethnic reform coalition, went into the election with 12 seats, while the Malay-Muslim opposition Perikatan Nasional (PN) held three and the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) one.