(Bloomberg) — Malaysia’s ruling coalition retained its seat in a by-election in the country’s richest state on Saturday, a boost for the prime minister Anwar Ibrahim as he embarks on economic reforms.
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Candidate Pang Sock Tao of the Democratic Action Party – the largest group in Anwar’s unity government – won around 57% of the vote in a four-way fight in Kuala Kubu Baharu district in Selangor state. This represents an increase of almost three basis points in the party’s vote share in the previous election a year ago.
The state-level victory will encourage the prime minister in his efforts to push through reforms that boost the country’s coffers and investor confidence, including a long-promised plan to eliminate blanket fuel subsidies. Malaysia, whose A3 credit score from Moody’s Ratings is the highest among its peers in developing Southeast Asia, needs to attract foreign investment in high-value industries to support economic expansion.
“The victory is a clear signal for the unity government to continue working hard to attract investment and heal and strengthen the national economy,” Anwar said in a Facebook post on Saturday.
The results suggest that support for both Anwar’s coalition and rival Perikatan Nasional is stable, according to Dr Syaza Farhana Mohamad Shukri, associate professor of political science at the International Islamic University Malaysia. “Neither new voters nor undecided voters are really excited,” she said.
The status quo is a welcome outcome for Anwar, whose government was rocked by religious tensions last month and has seen growing pessimism among the population. His alliance managed to ignore Perikatan Nasional’s attempt to boost its chances by fielding a Malay candidate to appeal to the ethnic majority.
Pang’s victory has no direct impact on the composition of the Malaysian parliament, where Anwar has held a majority since coming to power in late 2022. Elections for the Selangor state assembly seat were held after the death of the previous representative in March .
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