KUALA LUMPUR: From party infighting to fake news and racially charged social media posts, 2022 was an eventful year in politics.
The biggest event that captured the nation's attention was the 15th General Election (GE15). Mud-slinging seemed par for the course as a record number of big coalitions fought for seats in Parliament and, ultimately, control of Putrajaya.
There was also a record number of voters in the first general election to be held after the voting age was lowered to 18 from 21.
No coalition achieved a simple majority in the Dewan Rakyat, leading to the first hung Parliament in our nation's history.
The New Straits Times takes a quick look at what happened over the past 12 months.
15th General Election
All year long, former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob was pressured to call GE15, but the Bera member of parliament continued to play it coy until Oct 10 when he dissolved Parliament, just three days after the 2023 Budget was tabled.
The campaigning period saw the emergence of racially insensitive social media postings, besides the colourful yet fierce competition for parliamentary seats. This was apparent in Gombak, which saw a fight between Datuk Seri Azmin Ali and his former protégé, Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari.
In a nutshell, GE15 was a battle of coalitions rather than political parties. It saw Pakatan Harapan (PH), Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) going all out in terms of machinery and ability to come up with new political narratives to win over voters.
In Sarawak and Sabah, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) secured enough seats to make them the kingmakers for peninsula-based parties that were looking for additional support to form the federal government.
Despite massive campaigning efforts by all parties, GE15 resulted saw a historic hung Parliament, with no single coalition securing the minimum number of 112 seats in the Dewan Rakyat.
With BN claiming only 30 seats, it was up to PH and PN to gather the numbers, with both sides claiming they had majority support. It ended days later, when the Yang di-Pertuan Agong declared Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim the nation's 10th prime minister on Nov 24, ending his two-decade wait to hold Putrajaya's top post.
GE15 also brought two unlikely rivals together. In December 2021, the New Straits Times predicted a new alliance among political parties, and a year later, PH and BN decided to work together to form a unity government with the help of GPS, GRS and other parties.
PARLIAMENT
The special Dewan Rakyat sitting called by Anwar in early December proved to be fruitful for him as he won a vote of confidence, thus cementing his position as prime minister.
The Lower House also saw the appointment of a new speaker, Datuk Johari Abdul of PH, as well as his deputies Datuk Ramli Md Nor from BN and Alice Lau from PH.
A mini budget was approved in the Lower House, with the full 2023 Budget expected to be tabled by Anwar, who is also finance minister, in February next year.
Prior to that, the anti-party hopping law received two-thirds majority support in the house in July and went into effect on Oct 5, after the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
UNDI18
This year, the country saw the participation of some 5.8 million new voters after the implementation of automatic voter registration and the lowering of the voting age from 21 to 18.
The GE15 campaigning period saw coalitions going out of their way to appeal to the youth, especially through social media.
GREEN WAVE
The results of GE15 sprang a surprise in the political scene as PN stole crucial votes that previously went to BN in rural areas.
With the help of its strongest component party, Pas, PN scored 73 parliamentary seats in its first general election outing.
Analysts and observers said PN's victory was due to its effective social media engagement with old and young voters, although its campaigning material was deemed racist at times.
News reports during the campaigning period also revealed a strong "green wave" of support for Pas among senior citizens and youths in rural areas.
THE FALL OF GIANTS
The general election brought some prominent leaders to their knees after they were unexpectedly defeated. According to analysts, young voters kicked out the old guards.
Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was among them. After surviving his second admission to the National Heart Institute in January and Covid-19 infection in September at the age of 97, the former Langkawi MP was crushed in GE15, where he not only lost the seat, but also his deposit. The same fate befell his son, Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, in Jerlun.
As a result, Dr Mahathir and Mukhriz's Pejuang suffered a crushing defeat, with none of its candidates winning a seat in the Dewan Rakyat.
Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah of BN was defeated in Kelantan after 12 terms as the Gua Musang MP, though unlike Dr Mahathir, the majority was a razor-thin 163 votes.
Aside from that, former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin, who had to move from Rembau to the Sungai Buloh parliamentary constituency, was defeated by PH in a seven-cornered contest with a narrow majority of 2,693 votes.
Azmin was also shown the door when he lost the Gombak seat to Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari, and Anwar's daughter, Nurul Izzah, lost the family's traditional seat, Permatang Pauh, marking the end of PKR's grip on the seat that began over three decades ago.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Johor state elections: The state polls in the southern state saw multi-cornered fights benefiting BN, with the coalition winning a two-thirds majority in the state legislative assembly. The election also saw BN's poster boy, Datuk Seri Hasni Mohammad, replaced at the eleventh hour by current menteri besar, Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi.
The state polls also revealed a rare shift in mood among Chinese voters, who chose MCA over DAP.
Coupled with the Melaka state election the previous year, the results probably led BN to decide to call for GE15 earlier than expected.
PKR party polls: The party's internal election this year saw Rafizi Ramli and his team dominating the PKR leadership, with fresh faces chosen to replace some old guards.
Anwar vs Najib: In May, Malaysians were treated to a rare live debate between Anwar and former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, with millions tuning in to witness the historic night.
NOTABLE DEATHS
Former works minister and MIC president Tun S. Samy Vellu died on Sept 15 at the age of 86. The cause of death was not revealed.
Former chief secretary to the government Tan Sri Ali Hamsa died at a hospital in Dublin, Ireland, on April 21. He was 66.
Former Melaka chief minister Datuk Seri Mohd Adib Mohamad Adam die due to old age on Sept 21. He was 81.
