KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 — The new bloc of voters from the 18-21 age group is unlikely to influence the outcome of the March 12 Johor election, according to Pasir Gudang Barisan Nasional (BN) Youth chief Noor Azleen Ambros.
The politician from Umno claimed the voter bloc popularly known as Undi18 merely made up 6.4 per cent of the total 2.3 million voters in the southern state, and as such, is unlikely to be a decisive force, Sinar Harian reported.
“These are big-hearted young people, they also think about global issues, across ages, but with only 6.4 per cent of young voters out of a total of 2.3 million voters, they certainly won’t dominate,” he was quoted as saying during a broadcast show on Sinar Harian digital platforms yesterday.
Some political pundits have played down the influence of this new vote bank, which came into force after the Undi18 Bill that lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 was gazetted last year, coming into force on December 15, 2021.
Malaysiakini reported Ilham Centre executive director Hisomuddin Bakar saying he does not expect this new batch of young voters to turn out in full force for the Johor election next month, describing them as either apolitical to begin with, or just as politically fatigued as other older voters.
“Based on this situation, with the mood of the voters being the same as it was during the Malacca state election, I think the presence of this new group (of voters) will not bring a big impact to the Johor snap polls,” Hisomuddin was quoted as saying.
