Malaysia snap elections called in Johor and Negeri Sembilan

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s national unity government is facing a significant political test after two states under its coalition partners’ control dissolved their assemblies, triggering snap elections that will see the allies compete against each other. The state assemblies in Johor and Negeri Sembilan were dissolved this week, requiring elections to be held within 60 days.

In Johor, the state government led by the Barisan Nasional coalition, a key partner in Anwar’s federal administration, dissolved its assembly on June 1. Barisan Nasional has announced it will contest all 56 seats independently. In response, Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan coalition declared it would also compete in all seats. The Prime Minister stated that contesting against his unity government partner was not his preference, adding that he would have preferred to defer state elections to focus on economic recovery. He characterized the decision to call the election as Barisan Nasional’s choice.

In Negeri Sembilan, a state led by Pakatan Harapan, the assembly was dissolved on Friday following a political crisis. Fourteen assemblymen from the United Malays National Organisation, the dominant party in...