Bn To Retain Ayer Kuning Says Think Tank But 18 000 Vote Target Doubtful

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Ilham Centre says Saturday’s by-election will be a ‘litmus test on several matters’.BN candidate Yusri Bakir meeting Ayer Kuning residents during the campaign trail. (Bernama pic)PETALING JAYA: Barisan Nasional will not have any problem retaining the Ayer Kuning state seat in the by-election tomorrow, a study by a think tank has found, although its 18,000-vote target may be difficult to achieve
In describing Saturday’s by-election as a litmus test on several matters, Ilham Centre said the polls will gauge the effectiveness of the alliance between BN and Pakatan Harapan – allies in the unity government – especially in terms of securing a huge number of votes.
“However, a majority of the respondents surveyed felt that it would be difficult to achieve the target,” the centre said in its report today.
There are 31,940 eligible voters in Ayer Kuning, comprising 55.97% Malay, 22.9% Chinese, 14.38% Indian and 7.5% Orang Asli voters.
Ilham Centre said the main focus for the opposition is retaining the momentum in terms of winning the Malay votes, especially the youth, who had backed PN in the last general election.
“If PN manages to retain the same number of votes garnered, it will be considered a massive achievement,” it said.
In the last general election, PN secured four Malay-majority polling districts in Ayer Kuning.
The by-election tomorrow will, therefore, be an important battleground to determine if PN is able to defend its performance or whether these votes will return to BN’s fold, it said.
More subtle approach to woo voters
Ilham Centre observed that the political parties in the Ayer Kuning campaign trail had adopted a more subtle approach to woo voters in the two-week campaign, doing away with mega ceramahs and engaging directly with the constituents instead.
It also observed that the candidates had set aside time to conduct live streams to engage with the youth and urbanites.
It said PN was more aggressive and proactive, while BN and PH were more defensive.
Parti Sosialis Malaysia, on the other hand, was more consistent in its approach, in terms of using digital platforms to highlight issues related to labour and social welfare.
The by-election tomorrow will see a three cornered fight among BN’s Yusri Bakir of Umno, PN’s Abd Muhaimin Malek of PAS, and PSM’s KS Bawani.
It follows the death on Feb 22 of Umno assemblyman Ishsam Shahruddin, who had won the seat in the last general election with a 2,213-vote majority in a five-cornered contest. - FMT

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