MORE than 2.53 million voters will head to the polls in Johor today, to decide on a state government to lead them for the next five years.

Another 60,000 early and postal voters have already cast their ballots.

More than deciding on a new state government, the state elections this time are seen as one of significance – a Barisan Nasional (BN) win may pressure Putrajaya to call for an earlier general election (GE), whose deadline is July 2023.

The polls will show whether Malay votes will lean towards BN or arch-rival Perikatan Nasional (PN).

There are also concerns that it will mark the return of former prime minister Najib Razak, who has been convicted and sentenced in a criminal trial involving 1Malaysia Development Bhd.

Najib – undeterred by his conviction, which is pending appeal – has been assisting BN in its election campaign despite not being a candidate. He has remained hugely popular with some segments.

This will be the fourth state elections since GE14 in 2018. The polls will also deal with new developments that will shape the field for GE15.

Among them are:

New and young voters

Now that automatic voter registration and Undi18 have been implemented, all eyes will be on how 18 to 21-year-olds will vote, or if they will vote at all.

Johor now has about 748,000 new voters, whose turnout will indicate their interest in the state elections and determine the fate of contesting parties.

The Election Commission (EC) is expecting a 70% turnout, after the Malacca and Sarawak polls last year registered 65.85% and 60.67%, respectively.

The voter turnout in Johor was 74.5% (1.33 million people) in 2018.

Stability issues

BN has continued to tout its narrative of political stability in its election campaign, despite its role in causing a change in federal and several state governments in 2020.

As it’s mantra goes: vote BN for political stability and Johor will see an economic revival post-pandemic.

As for PN, the pact is banking on former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin’s image and populist decisions such as cash hand-outs when in power, and how unnecessary the snap polls are.

Pakatan Harapan, meanwhile, is hoping that its tried-and-tested message about BN’s corruption in 2018 will carry it through the polls this time too. The coalition is made up of Amanah, DAP and PKR.

Smaller parties such as Muda and Pejuang are focusing on youth and ideological issues, and hoping that their local candidates are good enough.

New parties, crowded field

Despite the large number of hopefuls and new parties vying for spots in the 56-seat state assembly today, the 239 candidates from 15 parties is not a new record.

Sabah still holds the record for having the most number of candidates, with 447 from 20 parties, but the candidates were vying for 73 seats in 2020.

Sarawak saw 349 candidates from 13 parties fighting for spots in its 82-seat state assembly last year.

What the Johor polls will prove, however, is whether political party bigwigs are still of interest to voters or whether people will vote for those who take action and reap results than mere personalities.

This will impact youth-based Muda (led by Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman); Pejuang (founded and led by Dr Mahathir Mohamad); and, Warisan (led by Sabah’s Mohd Shafie Apdal).

Voters are advised to adhere to standard operating procedure to curb Covid-19, and find out their voting stations and recommended voting time to avoid congestion via the MySPR app. – March 12, 2022.