70 Years Of Election Has Our Democracy Matured Enough

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As we approach Aug 31 and Sept 16, we will be commemorating the 68th anniversary of Independence Day and the 62nd anniversary of Malaysia Day, respectively.
Yet, few may be aware that on July 27 this year, we quietly marked 70 years since the very first general election in our nation’s history.
It may be time for the Election Commission to honour this significant date annually - as a tribute to the legacy of democracy and the people’s voice in shaping Malaysia’s future.
Long before independence was achieved, a pivotal moment unfolded on Feb 1, 1948 - the signing of the Federation of Malaya Agreement. This historic accord, involving the Malay rulers and Gerard Edward James Gent on behalf of King George VI, marked the end of the Malayan Union era.
ADSThe agreement came into effect following the dissolution of the Malayan Union Order in Council 1946, replaced by the Federation of Malaya Order in Council 1948, after resolute and widespread opposition from the Malay community. It was a defining step on the road to self-governance and nationhood.
It was more than just an agreement - its contents laid the foundation for a Constitution, paving the way for the formation of a federal government comprising the nine Malay states and the two Straits Settlements.
Thus, through this agreement, a representative body was established - the Federal Legislative Council, which was to be elected by the people.
This marked the beginning of the nation’s first general election in 1955. In preparation, a special committee was formed by the British to draw the boundaries of electoral constituencies.
The general election recorded a landslide victory for the Alliance - comprising Umno, MCA, and MIC - which secured 51 out of the 52 contested seats in the council. The remaining seat was won by the Pan-Malayan Islamic Party (PAS), marking its early presence in the nation’s political landscape.
Establishment of EC
Following that resounding victory, Umno, in particular, was entrusted with the mandate to negotiate with the British for independence.
As the Federal Constitution was being drafted, the Reid Commission - established as the Constitution Commission - presented several key proposals, including matters related to the conduct of elections.
These provisions were enshrined in Paragraph 71 of the 1957 Report of the Federation of Malaya Constitutional Commission. Among the key recommendations was the establishment of an independent Election Commission, vested with the authority to delineate electoral boundaries.
It was also proposed that the tenure of the chairperson and members of the commission be secured until the age of 65, ensuring stability and impartiality in its functioning.
Thirdly, the permissible voter deviation between parliamentary constituencies was set at 15 percent. For example, in 1959, with a population of 6,702,600 and a total of 104 parliamentary seats, the allowed variation in the number of voters per constituency ranged between a minimum of 54,781 and a maximum of 74,115 voters.
These recommendations were incorporated into Article 113 of the Federal Constitution. Accordingly, in 1960, the Election Commission - then chaired by Mustapha Albakri - carried out its mandate to delineate electoral boundaries independently and transparently, in accordance with the constitutional provisions.
ADSHowever, the outcome sparked dissatisfaction among those in power, leading to significant and drastic changes in the procedures for drawing electoral boundaries.
Electoral boundaries
A year before the boundaries were redrawn, the ruling party failed to secure a comfortable victory in the 1959 general election, despite winning 74 out of 104 parliamentary seats.
At the time, the opposition - represented by PAS under Burhanuddin Al-Helmy, Parti Negara led by Onn Jaafar, the Socialist Front led by Ahmad Boestamam, the Progressive People’s Party under R Seenivasagam, and Parti Malaya - collectively secured 48.3 percent of the popular vote.
In contrast, although the Alliance secured 71.1 percent of the seats in the Dewan Rakyat, it won only 51.7 percent of the popular vote. This revealed a stark imbalance - and the implication was clear: if electoral boundaries were drawn fairly and proportionately, without the presence of malapportionment, the Alliance’s position in future general elections could be seriously challenged.
As a result, in 1962, amendments were made to the Federal Constitution. Among them was the removal of the Election Commission’s original authority to independently draw electoral boundaries, which was replaced with new provisions under the 13th Schedule.
In this revised process, the original 15 percent deviation formula was no longer applied. Instead, it was replaced by the “one-half principle” or a 2:1 ratio rule. Later, in 1973, this principle was abolished and replaced with a new provision under the Federal Constitution - Thirteenth Schedule, Part I, Section 2(c).
In addition, the Election Commission’s power to determine electoral boundaries was removed and instead vested in Parliament.
As a result, if Parliament passes a constitutional amendment to increase the number of parliamentary seats, the Election Commission is obligated to implement it. The same applies to seats in the state legislative assemblies.
Even more concerning was the introduction of Section 8 and Section 9 of the 13th Schedule, which stipulate that any report on constituency delineation prepared by the Election Commission must be submitted to the prime minister.
Upon receiving the report, the prime minister is then required - with or without amendments - to table it in the Dewan Rakyat.
The 1962 constitutional amendment did not merely increase the likelihood of unequal vote distribution and gerrymandering - it effectively stripped the Election Commission of its independence as a neutral entity.
As a result, the drawing of electoral boundaries became a political tool, often marked by gerrymandering and malapportionment, used strategically to suppress opposition strength.
‘Pendulum theory’
This gave rise to what is known in Malaysian politics as the “pendulum theory”, where the strength of the government and the opposition tends to swing from one side to the other every five years - largely due to the fact that constituency boundaries can only be redrawn once every eight years.
However, since 2008, the political landscape began to shift as the opposition gained sustained momentum - notably after successfully denying the ruling party its two-thirds majority in the Dewan Rakyat.
This significantly limited the government’s ability to amend the Constitution and increase the number of parliamentary seats.
In addition, in 1984, the government introduced the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (Act 301) as a means to regulate media freedom, particularly during election periods, further tightening control over political narratives.
Similarly, the Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA) granted absolute authority to the home minister to detain individuals without judicial oversight.
This sweeping power was often used arbitrarily against political opponents, most notably during Operasi Lalang in 1987 and the reformasi movement in 1998.
Today, while there have been improvements in certain areas - such as the lowering of the voting age to 18, automatic voter registration, and most significantly, the repeal of the draconian ISA - many of the core amendments introduced in the 1962 Constitution remain in effect.
Ironically, since 2018, we have witnessed all major parties - Pakatan Harapan, BN, PAS, and Bersatu - take turns in government. Yet, none have raised their voices or taken concrete action to correct this long-standing issue while in power.
This leads us to a pressing question: After 70 years of holding elections, has our democracy still not matured to the point where it can function without government interference in the electoral process?
FAISAL ABDUL AZIZ is Bersih chairperson.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.

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