KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Malaysia's king said on Tuesday he will pick the next prime minister, after the leading two contenders failed to win a majority in last weekend's election and his proposal for the two to work together was turned down.
The vote resulted in an unprecedented hung parliament, with neither opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim nor former premier Muhyiddin Yassin winning the simple majority needed to form a government.
The king had given political parties until 2 p.m. on Tuesday to put together alliances needed for a majority. The king later met with Anwar and Muhyiddin, and summoned lawmakers from the Barisan Nasional coalition for a meeting on Wednesday. Nik Ahmad Kamal Nik Mahmod, law lecturer at the International Islamic University of Malaysia, said a minority government could be formed or the king could ask to meet with lawmakers individually to hear their choices for prime minister.
Barisan won only 30 seats – its worst electoral performance – but was expected to play a pivotal role in deciding who forms the government as its support is needed for both Anwar and Muhyiddin to get to 112.
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