MUDA will make its electoral debut in the upcoming Johor polls, but it will not be greedy and contest all 56 state seats.

Muda vice-president Mutalib Uthman said the party is currently negotiating seats with Pakatan Harapan (PH), and will stand only in seats it is confident of winning.

“There are (ongoing) seat talks, but it is not true that we are asking for a lot of seats,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

“We are discussing only suitable seats for Muda. We do not want to contest in all 56 seats… it is unfair to accuse us of asking for a lot of seats.”

Mutalib said the party wants to be seen as a serious contender in the state elections – the first in which it will be participating since its establishment.

“We have to be serious as this is our first election. If we contest only one or two seats, it will not seem right and people may think we are joking.

“We cannot reveal it. We have the numbers, but not all. We are targeting only seats that we feel like we can win.”

Muda’s committee will make a final decision on seat negotiations, he added.

“We are discussing with PH, but our final approval will depend on the committee.”

Seat allocations will depend on the coalition’s components, namely Amanah, DAP and PKR, and the seats they are willing to hand over to Muda.

Muda has also organised a fundraiser to seek financial support to enable its candidates to contest in the state elections.

Johor has 56 state seats. Before the dissolution of the state assembly, DAP and Umno and DAP each had 14 seats, while Bersatu had 11, PKR (7), Amanah (6), MIC (2) and PAS (1).

Multi-cornered fights are expected to take place in the upcoming polls, with Umno-led Barisan Nasional facing PH and Bersatu-led Perikatan Nasional.

Johor Menteri Besar Hasni Mohammad said the polls are needed as the state government had a slim majority in the state assembly, following the death of Kempas assemblyman Osman Sapian on December 21. – February 4, 2022.