Biography
Ahmad Zahid bin Hamidi (born 4 January 1953 in Bagan Datuk, Perak) is Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia and Minister of Rural and Regional Development, holding both posts since December 2022. He has been the Member of Parliament for Bagan Datuk since 1995 — one of the longest unbroken runs in the Dewan Rakyat — and has led the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) as president, and the Barisan Nasional coalition as chairman, since 2018. Zahid entered politics as political secretary to Najib Razak in 1986, became UMNO Youth chief in 1996, and won Bagan Datuk at his first attempt in the 1995 general election. He served in successive Barisan Nasional cabinets under Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and Najib Razak between 2008 and 2018, holding the Home Affairs and Defence portfolios among others, and was Deputy Prime Minister for the first time from 2015 to 2018. After Barisan Nasional lost power in 2018 he took over the UMNO presidency and served as Leader of the Opposition. Under his leadership the coalition won state elections in Malacca (2021) and Johor (2022) but recorded its worst-ever federal result in the 2022 general election, returning only 30 seats. His decision to take UMNO into a unity government with Pakatan Harapan — its opponent of two decades — put Anwar Ibrahim in office and returned Zahid to the deputy premiership, making him the first person appointed to that post under two different prime ministers. Zahid has faced extensive corruption proceedings. He was acquitted in September 2022 of 40 bribery charges relating to a foreign visa system and seven charges of receiving bribes as Home Minister. In September 2023 he was granted a discharge not amounting to acquittal on the remaining 47 charges concerning the Yayasan Akalbudi charitable foundation.
Constituencies (1)
Electoral track record
| Year | Party | Votes | % | Majority | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | BN | 16,578 | 39.61% | — | Won |
| 2018 | BN | 18,909 | 51.37% | — | Won |
| 2013 | UMNO | 17,176 | 53.27% | — | Won |
| 2008 | BN | 13,115 | 55.72% | — | Won |
| 2004 | BN | 17,049 | 79.08% | — | Won |
| 1999 | UMNO | 12,938 | — | — | Lost |
| 1999 | BN | 12,938 | 60.86% | — | Lost |
| 1995 | BN | 17,646 | 86.24% | — | Lost |
Parliamentary activity
From 249 Dewan Rakyat sittings- 3 Mar 2026· Sitting 20Absent
- 2 Mar 2026· Sitting 19Present
- 26 Feb 2026· Sitting 18Absent
- 25 Feb 2026· Sitting 17Absent
- 24 Feb 2026· Sitting 16Absent
- 23 Feb 2026· Sitting 15Absent
- 12 Feb 2026· Sitting 14Absent
- 11 Feb 2026· Sitting 13Absent
- 10 Feb 2026· Sitting 12Absent
- 9 Feb 2026· Sitting 11Absent
- 5 Feb 2026· Sitting 10Absent
- 4 Feb 2026· Sitting 9Present
Attendance, participation & recorded votes extracted from official Hansard records.
Connections (298)
Explore network- Anwar IbrahimPKR100% aligned
- Fadillah YusofPBB100% aligned
- Mohamad SabuAMANAH100% aligned
- Mohamed Khaled NordinUMNO100% aligned
- Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad100% aligned
- Fadhlina SidekPKR100% aligned
- Armizan Mohd Ali100% aligned
- Akmal NasirPKR100% aligned
- Shamsul Anuar NasarahUMNO100% aligned
- Liew Chin TongDAP100% aligned
News sentiment over time
1998 mentions across 36 months
News mentions
Summaries, sentiment labels and article-to-politician links here are generated automatically and can be wrong. Each item links to its original source — treat that as the record. How we generate this. Spotted a mistake? Use “Report an issue”.
Govt defends mandatory 2% EPF contribution for foreign workers
Finance Minister Anwar Ibrahim defended the government's mandatory 2% EPF contribution for foreign workers, stating it is low and part of…
Why you’re seeing this: Mentions Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
PAS patut tumpu tanding bersendirian pada PRU16, gesa Zaid
Zaid, ex-Umno kini PAS, menyalahkan Zahid Hamidi tidak ikhlas kerja sama dengan PAS dan menegaskan PAS mampu menang 60 kerusi Semenanjung…
Why you’re seeing this: About Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Forget Zahid and BN, go solo in GE16, Zaid urges PAS
Zaid, a former Umno member now in PAS, criticizes BN chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as insincere in working with PAS and urges PAS to go solo…
Why you’re seeing this: About Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Haze row: Malaysia to take transboundary pollution to Asean meeting in Manila
Malaysia urges Indonesia to act on transboundary haze pollution, with ministers Arthur Joseph Kurup, Anwar Ibrahim, and Ahmad Zahid Hamidi…
Why you’re seeing this: Mentions Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
PRN Melaka: Rundingan BN-PAS berkait kerusi belum muktamad, kata Takiyuddin
Takiyuddin Hassan berkata rundingan BN-PAS untuk PRN Melaka belum muktamad, manakala Zahid mengesahkan BN akan bertanding di 21 kerusi dan…
Why you’re seeing this: Mentions Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Showing the 5 most recent of 20 tracked mentions.