The Malaysian Insight

THE number of young first-time Malay-Muslim voters will increase under a new law that lowers the voting age to 18 but it is still uncertain if it will benefit only the Malay-based parties, said activists and analysts.

While a youth volunteer group said it is likely that Malay-based parties, such as Bersatu, PAS and Umno, will benefit from these new voters, an analyst dismissed such a notion on the grounds that the voting trend among the younger generation has shifted.

They, however, agree that the government is unlikely to push for the implementation of these changes in time for the next general election.

Undi18, a youth empowerment movement, said it expects the number of new Malay-Muslim voters to give Malay-majority parties an advantage.

Its co-founder, Qyira Yusri, said although there are no data, the expectation is based on the feedback from youth.

“Based on this, young voters will make a bigger percentage of Malay-Muslim voters compared to the present bunch of voters.

“This means it is likely to be favourable to parties, such as the Bersatu, PAS and Umno,” she told The Malaysian Insight.

She, however, said it does not mean non-Malay majority parties like PKR, Amanah, Muda and Pejuang don’t stand a chance at elections.

PKR, Amanah, Muda and Pejuang have the same opportunity to gain the support of new voters who yet to make up their minds, she added.

“Whatever it is, young voters still do not have their preferable party. Therefore, they will only vote for a party that can highlight their issues such as the economy.”

The bill to lower the voting age to 18 and automatic voter registration was passed in the Dewan Rakyat in July 2019.

The bill was passed during the Pakatan Harapan administration with the support of two-thirds in the Dewan Rakyat and without a split vote in the Dewan Negara.

The present Perikatan Nasional government said the new changes are expected to be implemented in July 2021.

The Election Commission, on the other hand, expects the number of voters to increase from 14.95 million to 22.5 million once the new age limit and automatic registration is implemented.

Ilham Centre executive director Hisommudin Bakar dismissed suggestions that the increase in Muslim Malay voters would give an advantage to Malay-based parties.

He said such thinking is based on the past that the new generation of voters is the same as the older one.

The older generations are tied to the political strength of a party but factors, such as urbanisation and information technology, are changing the trend.

“Voters’ perceptions can change quickly, even for a small mistake, such as when a leader makes careless statements, that can cause anger in social media.”

This situation has made it difficult for the government to control the narrative by feeding propaganda to the people as it did previously, he said.

Young Malay voters are also included in the “difficult to control” group.

“Especially when it comes to the issue of unemployment, their votes can give a negative reflection to the government,” Hisommudin said.

“Therefore, it is not easy to claim that the new voters will benefit Malay parties.

“There are many elements that can change the situation prior to the next election.”

He, however, agrees with the new changes in electoral age limit, saying that the opportunity for all parties to attract young voters is now wide open.

“This composition is important because this group may become the decider for any party to win and form a government.”

Will it be rolled out?

Although the new law has been passed, questions are still being raised if PN is truly committed to implementing the changes.

This comes after a senior leader from Bersatu, Dewan Negara speaker Rais Yatim questioned the PH government’s rush to pass the bill.

“Rais’ statement does not seem to respect Parliament, including MPs, senators who voted for the bill,” said Undi18’s Qyira.

Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin must explain his government’s commitment and whether the new changes would be implemented this July, she said.

Political analyst Rusdi Omar of the Universiti Utara Malaysia is also of the view that the government is not serious about the agenda.

But whatever the reason, the government must implement the new age limit because it was tabled and approved in Parliament with the support of MPs.

“In fact, the government’s failure to pursue the agenda will only cause anger.”

Hisommudin, meanwhile, said it is possible for the government to delay the new changes on technical grounds.

The increase in new voters and automatic registration won’t be applicable if Parliament is dissolved this year, said Hisommudin.

Voters’ data won’t be ready before July to accommodate the addition of nearly eight million new voters.

“There is no specific statement except the answer in Parliament by the Minister of the Prime Minister’s Department, Takiyuddin Hassan, regarding the preparation of the Election Commission and the National Registration Department to implement the Undi18 bill.”

He added that the government is unwilling to take risks with political inclinations from the hard-to-read segment of young voters.

Muhyiddin last month assured that he would dissolve Parliament as soon as Covid-19 is under control. – February 16, 2021.