Ruling Party Suffers Worst Upset In National Polls

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Malaysia's ruling coalition suffered its biggest electoral upset ever, losing control of four state governments and failing to win a two-thirds majority in parliament, in a protest vote against racial discrimination, crime and corruption.

The losses Saturday (8 Mar) were a humiliating result for the National Front coalition, which has governed Malaysia since independence in 1957, and raised questions about the political future of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

The coalition failed to win a two-thirds majority in the 222-seat Parliament for the first time since 1969. Instead it had to be satisfied with a simple majority, winning 139 of the 220 seats for which results were announced by the Election Commission.

Even if the National Front wins the remaining two seats, it would still fall short of the 148 seats needed for a two-thirds majority.

It was a stunning reversal of fortunes for Abdullah who had led the Front to its best result ever in the last elections in 2004, winning 91% of the parliamentary seats and 12 of Malaysia's 13 state governments.

"As of now we have obtained a simple majority," a grim and tired looking Abdullah told reporters with his wife, Jeanne, and Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak by his side. He said he will meet the constitutional monarch on Monday (10 Mar) to stake a claim on forming a new government.

Abdullah dismissed suggestions by a reporter that he would now face pressure from party members to step down.

"I don't know who would pressure me. There is nothing at this time," he said.

The opposition alliance of the Democratic Action Party, the People's Justice Party and the Islamic Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party, or PAS, won 81 seats, state television reported. In the outgoing Parliament the opposition had 19 seats.

"We suffered a lot of losses tonight," Abdullah's son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin told reporters. "But we are going to fight on. We are not going to quit. It is not the end of the world and we are going to get through this."

For the first time since 1969, the National Front lost control of the assembly in northern Penang, the only state where ethnic Chinese are a majority. It also lost control of Selangor, Kedah and Perak states for the first time, and failed to wrest Kelantan state back from the opposition.

"This is a defining moment, unprecedented in our nation's history," said opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. "The people have voted decisively for a new era where the government must be truly inclusive and recognize that all Malaysians, regardless of race and color, culture and religion, are a nation of one," he said.

A key issue in the elections was the disillusionment among Malaysia's minority ethnic Chinese and Indian population who have long complained about discrimination, particularly an affirmative action system that gives the majority Muslim Malays preference in jobs, business and education.

The program was designed 37 years ago to help the Malays catch up with the wealthier Chinese. But minorities complain the program continues despite rising standards of livings for Malays.

Malays make up 60% of Malaysia's 27 million people, while Chinese account for 25% and Indians 8%. Each ethnicity is represented by a party in the National Front, a power-sharing arrangement designed to keep racial tensions at bay.

The coalition's election losses underscore not only anger over racial inequities but frustration among all Malaysians over rising prices, corruption and crime.

First-time voter Michael Lim said he voted for an opposition party.

"They have not taken care of the people," he said in Kuala Lumpur, referring to the ruling coalition. "A lot of promises were made, but nothing (was) fulfilled."

Abdullah, who replaced longtime leader Mahathir Mohamad in 2003, has lost much of his popularity over the last five years. Although the economy grew by 6.3% in 2007, exceeding government expectations of 6%, many Malaysians feel the benefits have not trickled down to them.

In Penang, the Chinese-based Democratic Action Party and its allied People's Justice Party won a simple majority in the 40-member assembly, said Chow Kon Yeow, the top Democratic Action official in Penang. Election officials did not release final figures, but monitors from political parties see the results before they are announced.

The opposition Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party kept its control of the assembly in Kelantan _ the only state where the opposition had already been in power.

"It's a people's revolution. People are waking up and sending a clear message to the government that enough is enough," said Husam Musa, vice president of the PAS. (By VIJAY JOSHI/ AP)