All eyes on Melaka as 79 candidates vie for 28 seats [WATCH]

MELAKA: All eyes will be on Melaka over the next 14 days as 79 candidates enter the fray for the 28 seats up for grabs in the state election.

The battle lines became clearer yesterday after the close of nominations, but not before coalitions and parties made a series of last-minute adjustments to their seat allocations and candidate line-ups.

One of the surprises was Bersatu's decision to drop out of the Gadek race, despite having earlier announced its candidate for the seat.

With Bersatu out of the picture, Gadek, one of the five seats under the Alor Gajah parliamentary constituency, is now a four-cornered contest. Barisan Nasional is fielding Melaka MIC deputy chairman S. Nadarajah to defend the seat against three challengers.

They are Jegasilan Kungamboo of Pakatan Harapan, B. Laveen of Bersama and Laila Norinda Maon of Putra.

The New Straits Times has reached out to Bersatu secretary-general Datuk Seri Azmin Ali for comment.

A day before nomination day, MCA announced it would contest in Kota Laksamana, adding it to the three seats the party had previously been allocated.

The Nov 14 election is also a less crowded affair than the 2021 polls, which saw 112 candidates contest the 28 seats.

Universiti Malaya political analyst Dr Mohammad Tawfik Yaakub said the situation reflected a shift towards strategic electoral cooperation and selective seat allocation.

"Political parties are increasingly concentrating their resources and grassroots machinery on constituencies where they intend to compete," he said.

"Although smaller parties remain involved, the growing number of straight fights suggests that Melaka's electoral landscape is becoming more structured around major political coalitions."

Of the 28 seats, 11 will see straight fights, with nine featuring contests between BN and PH and the remaining two between BN and Bersatu. All 11 were won by BN in 2021.

One of the key contests is in Tanjung Bidara, where caretaker Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ab Rauf Yusoh will face PH candidate Mohd Yunazri Mustamiri. In 2021, the Melaka BN chief won the seat with a majority of 364 votes, polling 3,559 votes in a three-cornered contest.

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Another key BN-PH battleground is Merlimau, where Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh is defending the seat against PH candidate and state Amanah Wanita chief Rahayu Hamzah. Dr Akmal won the seat with a majority of 3,248 votes last time round.

Other seats seeing straight fights between the two coalitions, which are aligned at the federal level, are Ayer Limau, Taboh Naning, Durian Tunggal, Asahan, Ayer Molek, Duyong and Rim.

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Another 11 seats will see three-cornered contests, while six, including Gadek, will feature four-cornered fights. One of them is Bukit Katil, where Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari, who is Melaka PH chief, is seeking to defend the seat.

Political observers are also keeping a close watch on the four-cornered contest in Bemban, which features candidates from Wawasan and Bersatu, as well as two other contenders. In 2021, Bersatu's Dr Mohd Yadzil Yaakub won the seat on a PN
ticket.

However, following an internal rift within Bersatu that intensified after the expulsion of Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin in February, Yadzil and 16 others were sacked. He later joined Wawasan.

Yadzil is now seeking to defend the seat against Muhammad Rabaie Ab Hamid of Bersatu, Dr Muhammad Solehin Saleh of Bersama and independent candidate Abd Halim Said.

Nearly two-thirds of the 79 candidates, or 49 of them, are aged below 50.

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The age profile of the candidates comes as parties seek to appeal to a relatively young electorate, with about 65 per cent of the 687,697 eligible voters also below 50.

Despite the multi-cornered contests and slew of hopefuls, Tawfik said the election outcome would also depend on the strategies and approaches adopted by the contesting parties.

"The crucial factors will be grassroots organisation, voter mobilisation and the ability of each candidate to retain support throughout the campaign."

Candidates have until 11.59pm on Nov 13 to canvass for support before polling day on Nov 14.