JOHOR BAHRU, July 11 — [8.40pm:] Unofficial results show Barisan Nasional (BN) has won 31 of the 56 Johor state seats, giving the coalition enough seats to form the next state government with a simple majority.

The tally puts BN above the 29-seat threshold required to form the state administration.

The figures are based on unofficial counts and are subject to confirmation by the Election Commission.

[8.20pm]: Unofficial results show BN winning Kukup, Johor Lama and Tiram, while Pakatan Harapan (PH) has taken Bentayan.

In Bukit Kepong, unofficial results indicate former Johor menteri besar Datuk Dr Sahruddin Jamal of Perikatan Nasional (PN) has lost the seat to BN.

[8.15pm] : Umno secretary-general Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki claims BN won the Chinese vote in Machap

[8.10pm]: Caretaker Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi has reportedly retained the Machap state seat, based on unofficial results.

The BN candidate secured 6,509 votes, defeating Pakatan Harapan (PH) challenger Nur Hafiz Roslan, who received 2,393 votes, according to unofficial figures from the MyUndi website.

Onn Hafiz, who is also Johor BN chairman, was contesting a straight fight against Nur Hafiz in his bid to defend the seat.

[8pm]: Umno secretary-general Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki has claimed that BN is leading in 48 state seats based on unofficial counts.

A simple majority of 29 seats is required to form the Johor state government, while a two-thirds majority stands at 39 seats.

BN chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi also claimed that the coalition had “crossed the 40-seat” mark.

[7.49pm]: BN has taken the lead in a close race with PH in Johor Jaya. BN has 19,347 votes to PH’s 18,888. In 2022, PH won the seat.

[7.48pm]: Pakatan Harapan’s (PH) Maszlee Malik is leading in the battle for Puteri Wangsa against Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Teow Chia Ling, with an unofficial count showing a lead of around 7,500 votes.

The seat was won by Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) in the 2022 Johor state election under an electoral pact with PH.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere at Johor BN’s headquarters has been upbeat, with supporters celebrating as the coalition claims to be leading in more than 40 seats based on unofficial counts.

In contrast, the mood at the PH command centre has been more subdued as supporters await further updates.

[7.36pm]: PH is narrowly ahead of Barisan Nasional (BN) in the closely fought Johor Jaya seat, according to unofficial results.

PH has polled 8,733 votes, while BN is close behind with 8,503 votes. PH won the constituency in the 2022 Johor state election.

[7.26pm]: Unofficial counts show tight contests in several Johor seats. 

Unofficial results point to closely fought races in several constituencies, including Mengkibol and Tangkak, where Barisan Nasional (BN) holds narrow early leads.

In Mengkibol, BN is ahead with 2,727 votes against Pakatan Harapan’s 2,664, while Tangkak sees BN leading 1,406 to 1,337.

Elsewhere, BN has opened an early advantage in Bekok, leading 3,154 votes to 2,254.

In Perling, Pakatan Harapan is ahead with 3,260 votes, followed by BN’s 2,635, while Parti Bersama Malaysia trails on 308 votes.

Pakatan Harapan is also leading in Skudai with 1,950 votes, ahead of BN on 1,080, with Parti Bersama Malaysia and PSM trailing on 78 and 48 votes respectively.

[7.12pm] Barisan Nasional (BN) is leading in 45 of Johor’s 56 state constituencies as of 7.06pm, according to the coalition’s command centre.

The figures are based on unofficial vote counts and have yet to be confirmed by the Election Commission (EC).

[7pm] BN ahead in Tenggaroh by over 2,100 votes; Bekok (+1,000), Paloh (+1,244) and Mahkota (+1,100) also in coalition’s favour on unofficial counts. 

Umno secretary-general Datuk Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki claims BN is ahead in 33 seats, above the 29 needed to form the Johor government. All figures remain unofficial pending the Election Commission’s announcement.

[6.30pm] Unofficial counts show Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Barisan Nasional (BN) trading early leads. 

Based on unofficial vote counts, PH is ahead in Stulang, Jementah, Pekan Nanas, Johor Jaya and Senai, while Barisan Nasional (BN) is leading in Skudai, Bukit Permai, Mengkibol, Paloh, Perling, Tangkak, Bentayan and Bekok.

The Election Commission (EC) is expected to announce the official results as counting progresses tonight.

[6.20pm] (Unofficial): BN candidate leads in Bekok state constituency

[6pm]: All ballot boxes from the state’s 4,889 voting streams are now being transported to vote tallying centres before the official results are announced.

[5pm]:  More than 1.8 million voters, or 67.44 per cent of the electorate, had cast their ballots

The polling process began at 8 am, with voting stations closing in stages throughout the day.

The earliest polling centre to close was the Balai Raya Pulau Besar in the Tenggaroh state constituency at 11 am.

As of 5 pm, 67.44 per cent, or over 1.8 million of the state's 2.6 million ordinary voters, had cast their ballots.

The Election Commission (EC) had earlier set a voter turnout target of 70 per cent for this election, with full results expected as early as 10 pm tonight.