THE Undi18 group estimates that about 75% of first-time voters participated in the general election, its co-founder Tharma Pillai said.  

“We don’t have concrete data yet for the general election. Yesterday, at 4pm, there was an estimated 70% overall turnout rate. 

“Based on those figures, we believe that the Undi18 voter turnout rate could be about 75%.” 

According to the Election Commission, the final voter turnout for parliamentary seats was 73.89%.  

Malaysia has 1.44 million voters aged between 18 and 20.  

Young voters form 6.9% of the 21.03 million in the 2021 electoral roll gazetted by the EC on January 17.  

Undi18 came into force this year, lowering the voting age from 21 to 18 and introducing automatic voter registration. Johor was the first state election—which took place in March—to have Undi18 voters.  

Selangor has the highest number of new voters aged 18-21, at 280,495, followed by Johor (176,618) and Sarawak (133,015).  

Tharma said that Undi18 only made up about 7% of the total voters. 

“The more important fact is the young voters aged 18 to 40 that make up about 51% of the total voters.  

“Collectively they have a bigger impact in GE15.” 

He said the Undi18 voter turnout in GE15 was largely a success because of the youth turnout. 

“Another success was in terms of candidates. Most parties chose to have political rejuvenation by choosing younger candidates over old warlords. 

“There were fresh faces (candidates) and more parties pushed for the young people. The youth were the central focus for many parties, largely in their manifestos.” 

He said the only issue the Undi18 voters had faced was the cost of going back.  

“Some stay in Sabah and Sarawak. The cost of going back was a big challenge. The others were minor issues that were solved.” 

Meanwhile, International Islamic University of Malaysia’s Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar believes that it is too early to predict where the Undi18 votes went.  

“I still can’t read where Umno18 votes went to.  

“Assuming they went to Perikatan Nasional, my guess is that PN’s campaign is the most relatable to them. 

“PN’s machinery has been the most active with Tiktok, and this is the youth’s favourite social media platform.” 

He added that short and impacting videos helped give PN an advantage. 

“Furthermore, assuming that the Undi18 follows what their parents vote for, it shows the power of identity politics.” 

He, however, believes that Undi18 has made an impact in GE15. 

“It certainly is enough to tilt the balance in a few marginal seats. However, it’s still unclear where the Undi18 votes went.” 

He also said that Undi18’s estimates that 75% of this group turning out to vote is certainly impressive.  

“Most of them are probably excited to exercise their voting rights for the first time in their life. 

“The youth have become more aware of their right to vote, mainly driven by campaigns in social media and family influence.” 

James Chin of University of Tasmania’s Asia Institute said that it was still too early to gauge the Undi18 impact on GE15. 

He said that based on educated guesses, most youth voted for the conservative party, which is PAS. 

“This is something that nobody had expected.  

“Most of the people thought that the young people will vote for one of the mainstream parties who are not as religiously conservative.  

“But, given the spread of PAS victory, they have managed to attract a significant number of new and first-time voters.” – November 20, 2022.