ABSTRACT

The 2018 Malaysian General Election will stand as a major defining event in Malaysian history, when the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition unexpectedly lost power in the country they had ruled for over half a century. This volume brings together scholars who assess one fundamental factor that brought about this game-changing event in Malaysian politics: intra-elite feuding in the leading Malay-based political parties. This study provides an analysis of individual state politics as well as national trends shaped by the actions of leaders in government and the opposition.

An indispensable guide for scholars studying the politics of Malaysia and of Southeast Asia more broadly, it will be of great interest for all readers with an interest in Malaysian politics.

chapter |20 pages

Introduction

Malaysia’s 14th General Election and UMNO’s Fall: intra-elite feuding and the pursuit of power

chapter 1|22 pages

Democratization in an age of authoritarianism

Theorizing Malaysia’s GE14

chapter 3|19 pages

Elite feuds, patronage and factions

UMNO’s demise

chapter 4|25 pages

Electoral boundaries in Malaysia’s 2018 election

Malapportionment, gerrymandering and UMNO’s fall

chapter 5|22 pages

“10 years under Pakatan is better than 50 years under UMNO/BN”

Pre-electoral conflict and campaign rhetoric in Selangor

chapter 7|27 pages

Gambling on grievances

Melaka in GE14 and after

chapter 8|18 pages

Bangsa Johor

Factions, feuds and the fall of UMNO

chapter 9|22 pages

Penang

Victory by support or defeat by chance?

chapter 11|15 pages

Parties versus personalities in Kedah politics

Unstable and hung state assembly in Kedah’s GE14

chapter 12|16 pages

The green tsunami in Terengganu

The re-emergence of Parti Islam se-Malaysia