Permatang Pauh by-election, 2015
A by-election was held for the Dewan Rakyat seat of Permatang Pauh on 7 May following the nomination day on 25 April 2015.[1] The seat fell vacant after member of parliament Anwar Ibrahim was disqualified from holding his seat after being found guilty of sodomy in a highly controversial trial.[2] Anwar Ibrahim was a member of the Parti Keadilan Rakyat and leader of the opposition alliance Pakatan Rakyat. In the 2013 general election, Anwar won the seat with a majority of 11,721 votes beating Mazlan Ismail of Barisan Nasional.[3]
The Permatang Pauh by-election was contested by 4 candidates, consisting of former opposition leader, Anwar's wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail from PKR, UMNO's Suhaimi Sabudin, PRM's Azman Shah Othman and independent candidate Salleh Isahak.[4] There were reports saying that PRM has denied that Azman Shah Othman is a member of their party.[5][6]
Campaign
Several issues dominate the by-election campaign, with the recently introduced GST being the main issue.[7]
An UMNO branch in Permatang Pauh dissolved during the campaign period, citing neglect by party leadership.[8]
Results
Wan Azizah retained the seat for PR with a majority of just below 9 thousand votes.[9] Mirroring the trend shown in the Rompin by-election two days before, turnout dropped by more than 10% in Permatang Pauh. The lower turnout also means while PKR's majority is lower, their share of popular vote is practically unchanged.[10]
Malaysian general by-election, 7 May 2015: Permatang Pauh The by-election was called due to the disqualification of incumbent, Anwar Ibrahim after being found guilty of sodomy. | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | ||||
PKR | Wan Azizah Wan Ismail | 30,316 | 58.01 | - 1.18 | ||||
BN | Suhaimi Sabudin | 21,475 | 41.09 | + 0.60 | ||||
Independent | Salleh Isahak | 367 | 0.70 | + 0.70 | ||||
PRM | Azman Shah Othman | 101 | 0.20 | + 0.20 | ||||
Total valid votes | 52,259 | 100.00 | ||||||
Total rejected ballots | 843 | |||||||
Unreturned ballots | 43 | |||||||
Turnout | 53,145 | 73.93 | ||||||
Registered electors | 71,890 | |||||||
Majority | 8,841 | 16.92 | ||||||
PKR hold | Swing | |||||||
Source(s) "Pilihan Raya Kecil P.044 Permatang Pauh". Election Commission of Malaysia. Retrieved 2018-09-19. "Federal Government Gazette - Notice of Contested Election - By-election of the Dewan Rakyat of P.044 Permatang Pauh for the State of Penang [P.U. (B) 189/2015]" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia. 27 April 2015. Retrieved 2018-09-19. "P. U. (B) 221/2015 Federal Government Gazette - Results of Contested Election and Statement of the Poll after the Official Addition of Votes for the By-election of P.044 Permatang Pauh" (PDF). Attorney General's Chambers of Malaysia. 13 May 2015. Retrieved 2016-04-26. |
References
- ↑ "Four cornered fight in Permatang Pauh by-election". The Star (Malaysia). 25 April 2015.
- ↑ "Anwar no longer Permatang Pauh MP". The Malaysian Insider. 1 April 2015.
- ↑ "Wan Azizah is PKR candidate for Permatang Pauh by-election".
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2015-04-25.
- ↑ "Permatang Pauh by-election: PRM says Azman not from their party". 25 April 2015.
- ↑ "PRM denies Azman Shah is its member". www.thesundaily.my.
- ↑ "GST main issue among Permatang Pauh voters". The Malaysian Insider. 27 April 2015.
- ↑ "Umno branch in Permatang Pauh dissolved after years of neglect". The Malaysian Insider. 1 May 2015.
- ↑ "Official: PKR retains Pmtg Pauh, smaller majority". Malaysiakini. 7 May 2015.
- ↑ "Wan Azizah wins Permatang Pauh". The Malaysian Insider. 7 May 2015. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015.