PAS wing: KKB polls show youth still with PN, not bought by political 'candy'

The recent Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election has shown that the youth voted mostly for Perikatan Nasional, similar to the trend in the 15th general election, said PAS’ young women’s wing.

Its director-general Mardhiyyah Johari said the political “candy” Pakatan Harapan offered in the polls was insufficient to buy the votes of the youth.

"It is ironic that young people did not vote for the young Harapan-BN candidate because they are aware that the candidate from DAP represents the coalition that leads the Madani government.

"It turns out that young people are not satisfied with the Madani government's performance,” Mardhiyyah (above) was quoted as saying by PAS mouthpiece Harakahdaily.

Mardhiyyah was citing analysis from the Selangor government think tank Institut Darul Ehsan (IDE).

Yesterday, IDE senior research manager Khairul Ariffin Mohd Munir said PN secured 63 percent of votes from those aged 18 to 24.

"The turnout of voters aged 41 and above exceeded more than 60 percent, while the young crowd’s turnout was less than 55 percent," he told Malaysiakini, adding that a factor for this lower turnout among younger voters was their absence from Kuala Kubu Baharu.

The analysis also highlighted that a significant portion of voters, approximately 38.5 percent, did not cast their ballots, which led to a 7.7 percent decrease in voter turnout during this by-election compared to GE15 in 2022, dropping to 61.5 percent from 76.9 percent.

As for the racial breakdown, IDE found that Malay and Chinese voters recorded a turnout of 63 percent, while Indian voters were at 57 percent.

Despite PN's perceived dominance among Malay voters, the report indicated a three percent increase in Malay voters and eight percent in Indian voters supporting the Harapan-BN coalition. Chinese voters maintained their support for the Madani government.

Freedom of expression

Mardhiyyah urged the government to work on its disconnection from the youth, especially when it comes to freedom of expression.

She said Amnesty International reports for 2023 and 2024 had shown that the government failed to provide its commitment to improving laws restricting freedom of expression and public spaces.

"Economic issues, unemployment, education and cost of living greatly affect young people.

“As if the existing pressure is not enough, the fundamental right of freedom of speech which should not be touched has also been disturbed.

"TikTok contents were deleted, TikTokers were investigated, opposition leaders are so easily arrested and investigated but the opposite is true for government leaders,” she said.

"Young people see and judge,” she added.

Mardhiyyah also congratulated young voters in Kuala Kubu Baharu for not falling for political “candy”, demonstrating their strong principles.

Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao

On May 11, Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao was declared the winner in the four-way clash between her, PN's Khairul Azhari Saut, Parti Rakyat Malaysia candidate Hafizah Zainudin, and independent Nyau Ke Xin.

Pang won with 57.2 percent of votes, and a majority of 3,869 ballots. PN bagged 10,131 votes or 41.4 percent of the ballot.

The by-election was called following the passing of incumbent Lee Kee Hiong on March 20 due to cancer. - Mkini