SHAH ALAM - It is difficult to predict whether Selangor voters would remain with the current Pakatan Harapan government or swing to the new offerings of Perikatan Nasional, says political analyst Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian.
He said PN’s targets of Malay majority constituencies consists of more middle and upper-class groups thus made it more challenging as opposed to up North where they have stronger influence.
"It would perhaps be easier in the Northern region but still, PN needs to capture the three important groups namely the protest voters, the new voters and the automatically registered voters.
"They also have to find ways to retain loyalists who voted for the party in the last elections."
He said even though PN had proven to be a threat to PH by winning six parliamentary seats in Selangor in the 15th General Election (GE15), it was crucial to see whether their supporters were permanent ones or only temporary.
It was also possible for first-time voters who backed PN in GE15 to change their minds, he said, especially after seeing the performance of the current Unity Government.
Sivamurugan said besides having to compete with the slew of people's initiatives by the Selangor state government, the biggest challenge for PN was to come out with a reputable candidate for Menteri Besar as an alternative to the current Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari.
Meanwhile, DAP Taman Seroja chairman Azfar Faruqi Mohamad Idris said acknowledged PN’s potential to capture some of Selangor's Malay majority constituencies.
However, he was believed there was a bigger chance for PH to win the support of the voters focusing on the issues that truly matter to them such as healthcare and education.
"Its true PN made inroads in the last GE by capturing six parliamentary seats. This doesn't necessarily mean that PN has gained support in Selangor, but a significant number of new voters might have different views after the formation of the unity government,” he said.
Azfar went on to elaborate that the data from GE15 indicates that PN received support from Pas supporters who continued to vote for them, but other factions provided varying levels of support.
He said it was possible for first-time voters who backed PN in GE15 to change their minds after seeing how the Unity Government has performed.
"It is too early to say for sure how these voters will vote in the state poll, but it is undeniable that the Selangor government has implemented a slew of initiatives, such as aid for senior citizens, special needs children, and support for middle-income and low-income families.
"These initiatives are popular with voters and could help PH win the support of voters in the state polls.” he said