Melaka to head to the polls on Nov 14 in another test of shifting political alliances in Malaysia

MELAKA: Nearly 700,000 voters in Melaka are set to cast their ballots in the state polls on Nov 14, the Election Commission (EC) announced on Wednesday (Oct 7), in another test of shifting political alliances ahead of Malaysia's next general election. 

The election period will run for 14 days after the nomination of candidates on Oct 31, with early voting set for Nov 10. 

Melaka Chief Minister Ab Rauf Yusoh had announced the official dissolution of the state legislative assembly on Sep 23, paving the way for an election that was otherwise due by February 2027.

Before the dissolution, the state government was led by the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. 

In the 2021 state election, BN won 21 of the 28 seats, while Pakatan Harapan (PH) secured five seats and Perikatan Nasional (PN) claimed two seats.  

PH joined the state government in 2023 when Ab Rauf became chief minister and reshuffled the executive council to reflect the PH-BN partnership at the federal level following the 2022 general election that had resulted in a hung parliament.  

PH however withdrew its support for the state government in July in protest against a constitutional amendment allowing for the appointment of nominated assemblymen.  

It is still unclear who the various political coalitions will pick as their partners for the upcoming Melaka polls. 

BN chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said on Sunday that negotiations with potential partners were about 95 per cent complete, with the coalition expected to announce the outcome after the election date is revealed on Wednesday.

There are 687,697 registered voters in Melaka as of Sep 22, 2026.

The upcoming polls in Melaka comes just months after BN’s landslide victories in the Negeri Sembilan and Johor state polls. 

It won 25 of 36 seats in Negeri Sembilan on Aug 1 as part of a pact with the opposition PN, and 48 of 56 seats in the Johor state election in July where it had contested solo. 

While BN and PN’s dominant party, the Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) cooperated in Negeri Sembilan, their leaders have not agreed on how they would contest in Melaka. 

BN has reportedly said it will defend all seats it won in the last polls, but PAS has said it plans to contest 16 of Melaka’s 28 seats, including Tanjung Bidara, which is led by BN’s Ab Rauf, reported local media. 

As for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s PH, its Melaka chapter is finalising negotiations, including with Bersatu, to form a “PH Plus” collaboration, local media previously reported. 

Analysts earlier told CNA that they would be keeping an eye on who BN works with in Melaka, or if it goes solo, noting that it would be another challenge for Anwar and PH, who have not recovered from their defeats in Johor and Negeri Sembilan.  

Another factor that could shape the campaign is the Malaysian king’s decision on Sep 18 to allow former Malaysia prime minister Najib Razak to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest, conditional on him paying a RM50 million (US$12.26 million) fine.

Analysts earlier told CNA that Najib’s conditional pardon could give a boost to BN, given the influence the 73-year-old still wields there.

The Melaka polls come as Malaysia’s political alliances continue to shift ahead of the next general election. The 16th General Election must be held by February 2028, although Anwar has said he is open to considering calls for an earlier vote.