Malaysia

Malaysia's opposition Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party (PAS, also part of the Pakatan Rakyat coalition) won the Penang state by-elections in the Permatang Pasir constituency. We had indicated that the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition would be unable to wrest control of Permatang Pasir in spite of the jump in approval ratings for Prime Minister Najib Razak. Indeed, the opposition's victory margin has been reduced from 5,433 votes in the general elections in 2008, to 4,551 votes in the recently concluded by-elections. This indicates that while inroads have been made by the Barisan Nasional coalition, it is still a decisive victory by the Pakatan Rakyat coalition which won with a 65% majority vote.

To read the full article, please choose one of the following options: