KUALA LUMPUR, May 16 — Umno has set its sights on 22 seats in Selangor for the coming state polls, but a party Youth leader has said victory will only be possible if Barisan Nasional (BN) works with Pakatan Harapan (PH).

Selangor Umno Youth chief Mohd Imran Tamrin said Umno might not end up contesting 22 constituencies in the Selangor polls as the seat consultation committee must get the final nod from both PH and BN leaderships.

"We want to be sure that when BN contests, BN will win with PH’s support. Similarly, when PH contests, it should win with BN’s support.

"This will be refined and finalised by the consultation committee,” he said in an interview with The Malaysian Insight that was published today.

Umno’s 22 seats are based on each of the party’s 22 divisions in Selangor.

However, Mohd Imran cautioned that PH risks losing control of Selangor if it does not cooperate with BN in the state polls.

Similarly, he said that BN, which currently holds only five seats in Selangor, would also lose everything if it did not cooperate with PH.

He said PH still needed BN even though the latter’s performance had declined since its defeat in the 2008 general election.

"Without Umno and BN, PH may also lose the state of Selangor... same with Umno and BN.

"If we go solo in this state election, we may not be able to win many seats and we may also not be able to form a joint government,” said Mohd Imran.

In addition to the 22 seats, the news portal reported Mohd Imran as saying that Umno also wants to stand in the five seats it currently controls as well as in the seats that are represented by incumbents who defected during the Sheraton Move in 2020.

The five seats where the incumbents have defected are Batang Kali, Jeram, Selat Klang, Dengkil, Gombak Setia and Bukit Antarabangsa.

Mohd Imran said seat talks were heated because it was the first time that both PH and BN would not be contesting all 56 state seats.

The upcoming state polls will also be the first time where the two parties do not clash in an election.

"It is certain that at the negotiation table there will be overlapping seats that both BN and PH want to contest. This will be decided at the highest level later,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

The 37-year-old lawyer also drew attention to the fact that the last time BN won big in Selangor was during the 2004 state elections where it secured 54 of the 56 seats available.

Since then, its share of seats has steadily decreased in subsequent elections — 20 seats in 2008, 12 in 2013, and only four in 2018.

BN won the Semenyih by-election a year later, taking its current total to five seats.

PH won 36 seats in 2008, increasing that number to 44 in 2013 and 51 in 2018.

The coalition lost some seats following the defection of representatives to Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) to form the then ruling Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition with PAS and Parti Gerakan.

Mohd Imran pointed out that reality requires PH and BN to prove the strength of the unity government regardless of the number of seats contested.

"In terms of political strategy, there are definitely other matters and considerations that will be made by the leadership, including determining the seats contested by BN and PH.

"So no matter how many seats Umno or BN gets, those seats must be won together.

"As many seats as PH can contest, those seats are also ones that we have to work together to win. This is more important,” he said.

In Selangor, PH currently controls 41 seats, while BN has five. The other 10 seats are held by the Opposition from PN with Bersatu having six, and PAS one, and another three from Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang).

Pejuang lost the Batang Kali seat after its representative failed to attend the state assembly session for more than six months.

Mohd Imran said both PH and BN need to employ fresh, new methods of campaigning that will resonate with the current voter base, including the Undi18 group.

"Apart from giving out good service, we have to look at new demands. There are many professionals from among the youth who are well-educated and have a clear understanding of policies.

"They don’t only need an approachable leader but also one who can talk about policies, good governance and governing the country efficiently,” he said, adding that today’s young political leaders need to return to the common practice of political parties, which is to bring ideas and thoughts for the formation of better policies.

Following the general election last year, PH and BN worked together with Gabungan Parti Sarawak and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah to establish the unity government after no party had the majority to form a government on its own.

The first unity government convention was held on Sunday at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur.

Yesterday, it was reported that the Selangor state legislative assembly will be dissolved before its automatic dissolution date which is by June 25.

Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said that there was an agreement with the five other menteri besar and chief ministers in the states involved to dissolve their respective state assemblies by next month.

He said this will be done no later than the fourth week of June.