COMPETITION OVER SEAT ALLOCATIONS
This public disagreement over the projected number of seats the party could win suggests that the party’s next strategic focus is on outmanoeuvring unity government partners in the battle for seat allocations.
The competition over seat allocations started promptly following the conclusion of the party elections. In her first speech after she was confirmed as the deputy president, Nurul Izzah declared that the party should contest in 13 constituencies in the upcoming Sabah state election that must be held before the end of the year.
PKR’s plans for the state election have no impact on the balance of power in Parliament after the next general election. But the party’s plans will influence seat allocations at the federal level.
At the last Sabah state election in 2020, PKR contested only seven out of the 73 seats. It entered the Sabah state elections as a junior partner of the informal “Warisan Plus” coalition led by Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan), which was then leading the state government.
The outcome of the elections was disastrous. Warisan lost the state government, and PKR won only two of the seven contested seats.
The situation for PKR in the Sabah legislative assembly is not unique. Outside of Selangor, Penang, Negeri Sembilan and Perak, it has no meaningful presence in nine other state legislative assemblies. With limited influence at the state level, PKR has no choice but to ensure it dominates federal politics through respectable representation in Parliament.
