Malaysia was facing a hung parliament for the first time in its history as support for a conservative Islamic alliance prevented major coalitions from winning a simple majority in a general election. Without a clear winner, political uncertainty could persist as Malaysia faces slowing economic growth and rising inflation. It has had three prime ministers in as many years.
Failure by any of the main parties to win a majority means a combination of them would have to build a majority alliance to form a government. Malaysia’s constitutional monarch may also get involved, as he has the power to appoint as prime minister a lawmaker whom he believes can command a majority.
Longtime opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition won the most seats in Saturday’s general election, results from the election commission showed.
The biggest surprise came from former premier Muhyiddin Yassin, who led his Perikatan Nasional bloc to a strong showing, pulling support from the incumbent government’s traditional strongholds.
Credit: theguardian.com
