KUALA LUMPUR, March 13 — PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today congratulated Barisan Nasional (BN) over its landslide victory in the Johor state election but raised caution over the low voter turnout yesterday.
In a statement posted on his Facebook, the Opposition leader and Port Dickson MP said that his party accepts the mandate of the people of Johor.
“We are very concerned about the percentage of the voter turnout trend which is very upsetting and can threaten the democratic process. My appreciation goes out to all the supporters and machinery of Keadilan and Pakatan Harapan (PH) who worked hard to move the campaign throughout this state election.
“This decision also turned out to be an important reminder for political parties to regain their strength in the run-up to the next general election,” Anwar added.
PKR retained its Bukit Batu state seat, with its candidate Arthur Chiong winning in a four-cornered fight with only a 137 majority. The party only won that seat.
DAP meanwhile won 10 seats and BN won with a thumping majority after bagging 40 of the 56 state seats. The Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) won the Puteri Wangsa seat, in what is its maiden election, since being formally recognised as a political party.
Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang) lost in all 42 seats it contested, with its candidates also losing their deposits.
BN secured Johor with a super-majority, making a stunning comeback after being punished by voters in the 14th general election (GE14).
