BERSATU stands a chance at beating Umno by a slim margin in the Semenyih by-election on March 2 but it won’t be a sure win, according to research conducted by Institut Darul Ehsan (IDE).
IDE’s deputy chairman Prof Redzuan Othman said that although support for Pakatan Harapan (PH) in the seat had dropped by 4%, its component Bersatu is projected to retain the seat by a slim margin.
Bersatu, which won the seat in the 14th general election last year, is projected to get 47% of votes while Umno-Barisan Nasional is projected to take 36%.
“The percentage difference shows that it is still slim. 11% difference is not a lot, we can only conclusively say they will win if they can garner 51% of votes,” Redzuan said today at a press conference to unveil IDE’s findings.
The think-tank’s survey was conducted among 1,142 voters in Semenyih, a Selangor state seat that was vacated following the death of its Bersatu assemblyman last month.
Candidate factor
PH and BN will reveal their candidates for the by-election later today. To date, only Parti Sosialis Malaysia has unveiled its candidate, 25 year-old Nik Aziz Afiq Abdul, its youth committee member.
Bersatu won Semenyih in GE14 with by 8,964 votes in a four-cornered fight with BN, PAS and PSM, taking the Malay majority seat from BN for the first time.
Redzuan said voter sentiments may change once other parties announce their candidates.
18% of voters said they will decide who they are voting for once the candidates for both parties are announced.
17% said they will decide on the day of voting and 11% said they will decide a week before voting.
“The candidate factor here is strong. Voters are waiting to see who both parties put out for the by-election and they may change their vote depending on the candidate,” he said.
IDE’s survey found, however, that 50% of respondents said they do not plan to vote differently from GE14 and have already decided who they will vote for.
The survey also revealed that 61% or respondents are happy with the current Selangor government under Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari.
They also projected voter turnout to be at 84% based on respondents.
Nomination for the by-election is on February 16.
– https://www.themalaysianinsight.com
I hope PPBM will lose! PPBM is destroying PH!
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