Malaysia election: PN trounces BN to win Perlis as it claims state majority, wrests Parliament seats
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Datuk Shahidan Kassim campaigning in Perlis, on Nov 8, 2022.
ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
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ARAU, Perlis - Relative newbie Perikatan Nasional (PN) wrested control of Perlis from traditional powerhouse Barisan Nasional (BN) during Saturday’s general election, winning two of the three parliamentary seats and 10 out of the 15 state seats up for grabs. It is the first time in history that Perlis has fallen into opposition hands.
Depending on which party leader becomes the new menteri besar (chief minister), Perlis could become the fourth state to come under the leadership of right-wing Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) after Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah.
This comes after former Perlis chief minister and four-term BN lawmaker Shahidan Kassim was dropped from the BN candidate list by Umno president Zahid Hamidi and later expelled from the party, prompting him to defend his Arau parliamentary seat under a PN ticket. Umno is the main party in the BN alliance.
A popular Umno warlord, Datuk Shahidan on Saturday beat his former party colleague and corporate executive Rozabil Abdul Rahman of BN and 28-year-old Pakatan Harapan (PH) newcomer Fathin Amelina Fazlie to win the Arau seat by grabbing 51.7 per cent of the vote.
PN, which counts PAS as part of its alliance, also won the Padang Besar parliamentary seat for the first time. However, BN took back its Kangar seat from PH.
Perlis, which held elections for the state assembly at the same time as the general election, also saw PN sweep up 10 of its 15 state seats. BN held on to two seats, while PH won one. Two remaining seats were taken up by independents. This represents a big swing from the last state election in 2018, when BN had won 10 state seats while PN and PH won two and three, respectively.
PN also won a seat in the state constituency of Bintong, which was previously occupied by Perlis Menteri Besar Azlan Man, who is from Umno. He will now be replaced by a PN candidate.
At his voting centre in Tambun Tulang, Arau, earlier in the day, Datuk Shahidan told The Straits Times that his next step upon winning would be to choose a party within the PN alliance. Besides PAS, the other main party in the alliance is Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia.
Datuk Shahidan said his priority will be to unite the Malays under a single platform. He also said that a strong and united Malay population is key for the country to achieve political and economic stability.
