Voters wearing masks are casting their ballots in a Malaysian state election that pits Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s Malay party against its allies in the government for the first time amid a widening rift.
The poll in southern Malacca state is seen as a bellwether for voting behavior that could shape political alliances in national elections, which are not due until 2023 but are widely expected to be called next year.
UMNO and Bersatu, the two biggest parties in the ruling alliance, are at loggerheads but have agreed to share power until the next general election. Anwar’s alliance, however, crumbled last year after Muhyiddin Yassin withdrew his Bersatu party and formed a new government with UMNO, PAS and several other parties. But Muhyiddin was forced to resign in August after infighting cost him majority support. Ismail, who was Muhyiddin’s deputy, then took office, bringing back UMNO’s rule.
A big win for UMNO could potentially lead to challenges in ruling party states that are helmed by Bersatu, accelerate plans to call for early general elections and may prompt PAS and other parties supporting Bersatu to review their alliance, analysts said.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Two suspected Iranian computer hackers charged with threatening U.S. voters in 2020U.S. officials say the goal of the operation was to sow confusion and create the perception that the results of the presidential election could not be trusted.
Read more »
Chile’s voters are on the verge of a terrible mistakeTwo extremists are leading in the polls for this week’s presidential election
Read more »
Op-Ed: Will voters choose to make Chile terrible again?Chile's election this weekend could see an ultra-right-wing populist, who considers Gen. Augusto Pinochet his hero, become president.
Read more »
FYCit Screenings App Launches, Creating Compass For Awards-Season VotersEXCLUSIVE: For those awards voters looking for a centralized place where they can find information about contender screenings going on around town, now there’s finally a destination. Independ…
Read more »
Voters are last brake on Turkey’s lunatic expressThe global struggle against rising prices has nothing on Turkey. Despite inflation of almost 20%, the central bank slashed its main interest rate to 15% on Thursday, the day after President Tayyip Erdogan, nicknamed The Chief, pledged to pursue this unorthodox campaign against high borrowing costs “to the end”. With few other checks on an increasingly autocratic ruler, voters might be the last chance of restoring monetary sanity.
Read more »
Entire House GOP opposes Biden's $1.7T bill, but 42 percent of Republicans voters back itSubstantial majorities of Republican voters also back some of the legislation's key provisions, according to new polling.
Read more »