10/07/2026 03:14 PM

Johor Polls: Final Campaign Hours As Voters Set To Decide State's Future Tomorrow

By Yasmin Ahmad Zukiman

JOHOR BAHRU, July 10 (Bernama) -- After two weeks of intense campaigning, the curtain will fall on the 16th Johor state election campaign at 11.59 pm tonight, bringing to an end all canvassing activities, both on the ground and online.

Starting at 8 am tomorrow, the focus will be on 1,076 polling centres to allow 2.7 million voters to decide the fate of the 172 candidates contesting for the 56 state seats, which is a rather smaller number compared to 239 candidates in the last state election.

With campaigning having begun on June 27, political parties have spent the past fortnight presenting their strategies and manifestos. The final decision now rests with voters, who will determine Johor's leadership and direction for the next five years.

The Election Commission (EC) expects full results to be known as early as 10 pm tomorrow.

An important stage of the electoral process was completed last Tuesday with early voting involving 20,607 members of the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM), the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM), the General Operations Force (PGA) and their spouses.

Throughout the campaign, political parties focused on issues such as the cost of living, economic recovery, job creation and public welfare in their efforts to win voter support.

The final campaign push gathered momentum last night with the presence of Prime Minister and Pakatan Harapan (PH) chairman Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, as well as Deputy Prime Minister and Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

Political analyst Dr Nazreena Mohammed Yasin of Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) said voter turnout would be the key indicator of whether support built during the campaign translated into votes.

“The impact of voter turnout cannot be generalised because it varies according to constituency and voter demographics. Higher turnout may benefit certain parties in some areas but have little effect elsewhere.

“Turnout should therefore be viewed as a factor that could influence electoral dynamics, particularly in marginal seats, rather than as a definitive predictor of victory for any party,” she said.

Overall voter turnout in the 2022 Johor state election stood at 54.92 per cent.

Nazreena said the effectiveness of party machinery in mobilising supporters and managing polling day operations would be critical, especially in closely contested constituencies.

She also highlighted the influence of the fence-sitters or the undecided voters, whose last-minute decisions could determine the outcome in seats with narrow winning margins.

Changes in victory margins, she added, would also indicate whether support for political parties had strengthened, weakened or shifted since the previous election.

“Election results can also be assessed from the perspective of voter confidence in the government’s performance, the credibility of candidates, political stability and each party's ability to address economic challenges and the rising cost of living,” she said.

Meanwhile, another political analyst, Assoc Prof Dr Mazlan Ali of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), said this election had seen the major coalitions place greater emphasis on the political stability narrative as their core campaign message.

“I believe the campaign narrative has been dominated by BN and PH, given the performance of both coalitions at the federal and state levels, as well as their position within the Unity Government," he said.

Mazlan said that while parties had presented various manifestos and pledges, voters were increasingly influenced by their track records in government and their ability to deliver on past promises.

He also expects the heightened public interest in this election to contribute to a higher voter turnout, making every vote more significant in determining Johor's future.

The 16th Johor state election features 56 candidates each from BN and PH, followed by Perikatan Nasional (33), Parti Bersama Malaysia (15), the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) (four), Parti Orang Asli Malaysia (one), Parti Sosialis Malaysia (one) and six independent candidates.

Before the Johor State Legislative Assembly was dissolved on June 1, BN held 40 seats, followed by PH with 12, Perikatan Nasional with three and MUDA with one.

For the latest updates on the 16th Johor state election, visit https://prn.bernama.com/johor/

-- BERNAMA

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