JOHOR BARU, Feb 26 — With a total of 10 political parties throwing their hats into the ring for the Johor election, the number of candidates fighting for just 56 seats in the state legislative assembly is staggering.
The Barisan Nasional (BN) is looking for a landslide win this time and is contesting each of the 56 seats up for grabs with anchor party Umno running in 37, leaving the remaining 19 to coalition partners MIC and MCA.
But the Opposition and fellow ruling party Bersatu, which leads the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, are shaking things up with their own nominees too.
Malaysians can expect to see multi-cornered fights on March 12 with each party hoping to clinch at least one seat.
Amid such a crowded field, it can be hard to tell who is who. Here’s a list of 13 people to watch this election. Some are newcomers while some intend to make their comeback felt.
Newcomers
For the hot seat of Larkin in the Johor Baru city centre, the BN is offering its 38-year-old Johor Umno Youth chief Mohd Hairi Mad Shah.
The first-time election candidate has been active in social and community work in the Johor Baru parliamentary area where he resides, as well as the entire state as support for other BN Youth wings.
He is seen as young and energetic and has been a pro-active activist when it comes to community and national issues.
Another first-time BN candidate is state MIC women’s chief N. Saraswati who is running in Kemelah. She is an active and loyal MIC party member and leader.
Saraswati, 58, has been a regular volunteer at most of her party events, and this time round she is the second MIC women’s chief to contest in a state election.
On PN’s newcomer list is Zulkifli Bujang, a former press secretary to Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin.
Zulkifli, 44, who is also a former Bernama and RTM television personality, will be challenging BN for Larkin.
Another notable election first-timer is Pejuang’s Nornekman Osman, the eldest son of former Johor mentri besar Datuk Osman Sapian who died last December.
Nornekman is seeking to win Kempas, the same seat his father won for Bersatu in Election 2018.
The Sabah-based Parti Warisan is joining the election in Johor for the first time and is trying to win a seat here as part of its peninsula expansion plans in preparation for the 15th general election.
Warisan is fielding Hishamuddin Busri in Pekan Nenas. While the 52-year-old businessman and politician is no stranger to Johor politics as he has helmed several divisional posts throughout his political career in Umno and Bersatu, this is his first time contesting in an election.
A Pekan Nenas local, Hishamuddin who is better known as “Kino” is a community leader and a seasoned hand at political strategy. He was also the special assistant for the Kukup assemblyman Suhaimi Saleh from 2013 to 2018.
Johor PKR women’s chief Napsiah Khamis Maharan is another new face and will be contesting in the Kempas state seat.
The 42-year-old businesswoman and activist is an active member of the party and is known to be passionate about championing the rights of the people.
The first-time candidate was initially PKR’s candidate for the Puteri Wangsa seat. However it was ceded to PH ally Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) who later ceded it to the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda), causing conflict among the Opposition parties.
Napsiah made headlines late last year for questioning the authorities when she was prevented from distributing aid at a Pagoh flood relief centre while wearing her PKR attire, only to see former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin descend on the scene in his PN shirt and cap.
For Muda, its secretary-general Amira Aisya Abd Aziz will contest the Puteri Wangsa state seat for the coming polls. The 27-year-old lawyer has been promoting the participation of active youth leaders for Johor.
Amira Aisya who hails from Johor Baru was among the first Muda candidates to be announced by its president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman early this month.
Pejuang is fielding its international affairs bureau head and central executive committee member Tariq Ismail Mustafa in Sedili. The 42-year-old comes from an illustrious family, being the grandson of Malaysia’s second deputy prime minister Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman.
Tariq’s uncle Mohamed Tawfik Ismail was once a Johor MP in Sungai Benut before a name change to Simpang Renggam.
One name that is turning heads is Johor DAP’s publicity secretary Marina Ibrahim who will contest in Skudai. The 34-year-old is known as a local community activist. She is also the first female Malay candidate from DAP to contest in a state seat for Johor.
Marina is expected to continue PH’s dominance in Skudai as it is the most coveted seat for the Opposition coalition. The previous candidate managed a whopping majority of more than 35,000 based on about 100,000 voters for the 2018 GE14 results.
Former MBs
Johor’s caretaker mentri besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad is seeking to defend his Benut seat for the BN.
Hasni, a seasoned politician, has held senior state executive committee posts before the landmark 2018 general election. After GE14, he became first the Johor Opposition leader before assuming the role of mentri besar when the PH government collapsed in February 2020.
The 62-year-old is known as a gentleman politician and has been commended by even his political rivals for his moderate approach to politics.
But BN is not the only one with an MB for a candidate. PN is fielding its own former Johor mentri besar Datuk Dr Sahruddin Jamal.
The 47-year-old is seeking to defend Bukit Kepong which he won in Election 2018 on the PH ticket.
Comeback
Former DAP party strategist Mahdzir Ibrahim is seeking to return to active politics and this time, he is running for Semerah as a Pejuang candidate.
The 45-year-old is a seasoned politician and was previously the DAP candidate for the Tanjung Piai parliamentary seat in the 2013 general election.
Former education minister Maszlee Malik is contesting in his first state election this time.
The Simpang Renggam MP is running in Layang-Layang, one of two state seats within his parliamentary constituency.
The 47-year-old who made his political debut with Bersatu before leaving to become an independent is fielded in the Johor election as a PKR candidate and is touted to be the party’s offering as the next mentri besar if it and the PH coalition win the March 12 vote.
