Beyond the Ballot Box

We’re only a few days away from the Johor State elections. Over the past couple of weeks, political parties have been busy campaigning, trying to win the hearts & minds of Johoreans. Experts have claimed that the upcoming Johor elections is highly important and will shape the outcome of GE15, for various reasons including the fact that this will be the first elections that will see 18-21-year-olds go out and vote. But do the masses care? And what could be the outcome of this election?

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R Arangkannal will be Parti Sosialis Malaysia’s sole candidate at the upcoming Johor state elections. The 46 year old activist and filmmaker will be competing for the Kota Iskandar state seat against four other candidates, namely Dr Dzulkelfy Ahmad of Pakatan Harapan, Johor Umno secretary Pandak Ahmad, Samsudin Ismail from Perikatan Nasional and Dr Zaini Abu Bakar of Parti Pejuang. He joins us to discuss PSM’s manifesto.

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Amira Aisya is one of the founding members and secretary general of Parti MUDA. Not only that, other members and supporters of the party regard the 27 year old as the ‘Iron Lady’ of MUDA. Amira will make her debut as a political candidate in the upcoming Johor State elections, competing for the Puteri Wangsa seat. She joins us on the show today to share why she decided to join politics, seat negotiations with Pakatan Harapan, as well as how she and MUDA are planning to improve the lives of everyday Johoreans.

Note: This show was recorded at 11am on 24/2/2022. At 2.50pm the party announced that MUDA info chief Rashid Abu Bakar will be competing in Larkin, confirming the first clash with Harapan component party, PKR.

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We’re just three weeks away from the Johor state elections. Many experts have stressed the importance of the upcoming elections, not just to Johoreans, but with regard to our national political landscape too. The 2018 General Elections highlighted the need for a united opposition in the battle against Barisan Nasional. However, it’s becoming painfully clear – if it wasn’t already – that opposition is far from united. Dr Bridget Welsh joins us to share her insights.

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Why doesn’t Kuala Lumpur have ADUNs / state legislators, similar to other states? The city does have MPs, after all. Why is there a Federal Territories minister in the cabinet and why is said minister almost always from outside the Federal Territories? Why does any of this matter and what can we do about it?

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The Johor State Assembly officially has been dissolved as of Jan 22. While the exact date of the elections is yet to be announced, it must take place within 60 days of the dissolution of the state assembly. But what is the significance of this election? In fact, what’s the importance of state elections in the first place and how is it different from GE?

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On today’s show, Dr Oh Ei Sun joins us to discuss a few different things concerning our political landscape today, namely what’s been going on in Sarawak since GPS won a huge mandate, the possibility of an upcoming state election in Johor, as well as a little bit on the growing imbalances in constituency sizes.

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Malaysia’s political history has been in flux for some time. Things changed in 2018 when the people voted out the incumbent Barisan Nasional after 60 Years. But what’s perhaps even more significant is Langkah Sheraton and the events that have transpired since. Are we on the cusp of a new political order – perhaps a radical shift in a new direction? Liew Chin Tong joins us to discuss his paper.

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2021 is certainly one for the history books. Malaysian Covid-19 death toll reached a grim 31 000, we got hit by unprecedented floods which affected around 70 000 individuals and counting, a State of Emergency was declared, Parliament was shut down and in and around all of this, elite level politicking and musical chairs carried on, completely detached from the realities and suffering on the ground. But perhaps there is also a silver lining to all of this – people rising up and banding together. James Chai joins us to discuss.

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On this edition of Best of Beyond the Ballot Box 2021, we look back at the year that was in Malaysian politics – from infighting in UMNO, another scramble for numbers in Parliament to Ismail Sabri’s 100 Days as Prime Minister.

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