Malaysia’s 2023 State Elections: Grounded Perspectives

MALAYSIA STUDIES PROGRAMME

About the Webinar

While the November 2022 parliamentary election is still fresh on voters’ minds, many Malaysians will be heading to the polls again on August 12. Citizens in six of the country’s thirteen states will be picking their state assembly representatives. Rather than holding their state polls concurrently with the parliamentary elections last year, the leaders of these states opted to go to their full terms.

The six states can be distinctly clustered and compared. Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Harapan are the incumbents in Selangor, Penang, and Negri Sembilan – urbanized ethnically diverse states on the peninsular west coast. In contrast, the states of Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu reside in the north, are more rural and ethnically homogenous, and up until the dissolution of their legislatures were under the opposition coalition Perikatan Nasional.

Collectively, these states constitute a good cross-section of the country and will provide a good barometer of people’s feelings towards Perikatan Nasional as well as the Unity Government, comprised of Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan coalition and its former foe Barisan Nasional.

Drawing on fieldwork in Kedah, Penang, Negri Sembilan, and Selangor, this event will provide a snapshot of the tone, tempo, temperature of the campaigns two days out from the elections.

About the Speakers

Azmil Tayeb is an Associate Professor at Universiti Sains Malaysia and a Visiting Research Fellow at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.

Dr Francis E. Hutchinson is a Senior Fellow and Coordinator of the Malaysia Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.

Kevin Zhang is Senior Research Officer in the Malaysia Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, with research interests in electoral politics, labour markets, and transport.

Dr Lee Hwok Aun is a Senior Fellow and Co-coordinator of the Malaysia Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute.

Registration

This webinar will be delivered online entirely. You can join the webinar at the specified date and time using devices (computer, phone, or tablet) with internet connection.

Please register here to receive your unique link for joining the webinar.

If you have questions for the speakers, please key in your questions via the Q&A, stating your name and affiliation. The moderator will field them to the speakers during the Q&A session.