DAP survives Johor test as PKR, Amanah falter
The coalition’s performance told a stark tale of contrasts among its three component parties. While DAP lost several key seats, it managed to hold on to six of its traditional strongholds, but PKR and Amanah continued to struggle in their attempts to rebuild support in the state.
DAP, which contested 17 seats, only retained Bentayan, Penggaram, Mengkibol, Senai, Skudai and Stulang.
It ceded Jementah, Tangkak and Johor Jaya to MCA, and Perling to MIC, suggesting erosion in the party’s urban and Chinese support base.
However, DAP comfortably retained Skudai despite replacing Marina Ibrahim, who quit politics over a candidate selection dispute that became the party’s biggest internal controversy before campaigning began.
PKR, which contested the most number of seats at 20, again failed to make significant inroads.
The party lost Bukit Batu, its only seat from the 2022 state election, but captured Puteri Wangsa from Muda. PH had held Puteri Wangsa since 2013.
The result extended PKR’s miserable run in Johor after it was reduced to a single seat in 2022 following its five-seat victory during PH’s historic 2018 win.
Unlike BN, which built its campaign around menteri besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi, PH went into the election without naming a menteri besar candidate or poster boy, saying it respected the Johor palace’s prerogative to appoint the state’s leader.
Without an official campaign figurehead, much of the attention fell on former education minister Maszlee Malik, who contested Puteri Wangsa in a bid to revive his political career after losing the Simpang Renggam parliamentary seat and the Layang-Layang contest in 2022.
Maszlee succeeded in winning Puteri Wangsa by 5,744 votes, but the party’s overall performance remained underwhelming.
PKR had also pinned its hopes on Batu Pahat MP Onn Abu Bakar in Senggarang, but he was defeated by a majority of 7,916 votes.
Coming less than a year after its disappointing Sabah election performance, the latest result is likely to intensify pressure on PKR as it heads into the Negeri Sembilan polls in three weeks, and prepares for a possible general election later this year.
Amanah likewise failed to stage a comeback, retaining only Simpang Jeram, the sole seat it won in the 2022 state election, after securing nine seats during PH’s 2018 victory.
The party fielded Pulai MP Suhaizan Kaiat in Larkin after he successfully defended the Pulai parliamentary seat in the 2023 by-election, but lost by a majority of 20,282 votes.
Despite expanding its contest to 19 seats this election, Amanah failed to translate the broader fielding strategy into electoral gains, again casting doubt on the party’s value to PH.
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