JOHOR BAHRU: Barisan Nasional (BN) swept to a resounding victory in Malaysia’s Johor state election on Saturday (Jul 11), winning 48 out of 56 seats and surpassing the 40 it won in 2022, its leaders said.
Its Johor rival, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, is poised to win the remaining eight seats in the closely watched contest, losing ground from the 12 seats it secured in 2022.
Speaking to reporters at around 11pm, BN chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said: “Friends of Barisan Nasional, we want to thank you all for your support.
“I want to congratulate all of you. We have clinched 48 seats, and now we will help Dato Onn (Hafiz Ghazi) so Johoreans will live better lives,” he added, referring to BN Johor chair and incumbent chief minister.
As of 11.10pm, official results by the Election Commission show BN has won 40 seats, and PH six.
BN’s majority of over two-thirds in the state assembly gives it the absolute power to pass constitutional amendments and unilaterally redraw electoral boundaries in the state.
BN and PH were the only political coalitions that contested all seats in the Jul 11 election. Other parties and coalitions, including Perikatan Nasional (PN),fielded between one and 33 candidates.
Onn Hafiz retained his Machap seat.
Some key seats that flipped from PH to BN included Johor Jaya, Perling, Bukit Batu, Jementah and Tangkak.
BN also won three seats from PN: Bukit Kepong, Maharani, Endau.
PH’s candidate Maszlee Malik won the Puteri Wangsa seat from the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA).
