The shattering of the high-turnout myth exposed several hard truths for Mr Anwar and the PH coalition-led government. The coalition’s losses to BN and UMNO were structural and not cyclical. There was a broad erosion in all segments, with vote share collapsing even in seats PH retained.
A MAJOR BLOW TO DAP AND ANWAR IBRAHIM
The Democratic Action Party (DAP), PH’s largest party and the anchor of its Chinese support, underperformed spectacularly. Chinese voters, who had invested enormous political capital in the party as the champion of their interests, saw the party as ineffective.
In the government, DAP leaders hold key portfolios, such as housing and transportation. But failure to address gripes over worsening housing availability and pressure on small businesses showed that DAP could not deliver material improvements in Malaysians’ daily lives when given levers of power.
The party only won six seats in Johor, while the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), BN’s main Chinese anchor, won eight seats and wrested seats that were long considered strongholds of the DAP, such as Tangkak, Johor Jaya and Jementah.
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