Malaysian ruling coalition suffers poll debacle

Supporters of Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) celebrate in front of its headquarters in Kota Bahru March 9, 2008.

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia's ruling party faced its biggest electoral debacle on Sunday, as the opposition claimed wins in five of 13 states, putting the prime minister's political future at risk.

The multi-racial National Front coalition did get at least a simple majority in parliament, the elections commission announced, and will form the government at the federal level. But the two-thirds majority in parliament it has held for most of its five-decade-long rule was in doubt.

The leftist Chinese-backed Democratic Action Party (DAP) won Penang, a manufacturing hub that is home to many multinational firms.

The opposition Islamist party PAS claimed shock victories in the northern heartland states of Kedah and Perak, and crushed the ruling coalition in the northeastern state of Kelantan, a PAS stronghold. The opposition was also gaining in Selangor state surrounding Kuala Lumpur, the state news agency Bernama said.

The poll, called before it was due in May 2009, was widely seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's rule, and Malaysians took the opportunity to administer a stinging rebuke over price rises, religious disputes and concerns over corruption.

"Tomorrow we will start building a brighter future," opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim told reporters. "This is a new dawn for Malaysia."

The shock defeat in Penang stirred memories of the last time the ruling coalition failed to win a two-thirds majority, in 1969, when deadly race riots erupted between majority ethnic Malays and minority Chinese.

"This is the biggest defeat ever since our (party's) founding 40 years ago," Penang Chief Minister Koh Tsu Koon said. "I feel sad and surprised. I urge all National Front members to stay calm and not to take any action that could jeopardise peace and security in the state."

Police officials vowed to use tough internal security laws against anyone spreading rumours and banned victory processions after the results. A victory procession triggered the 1969 violence.

Results from the elections commission as of 1800 GMT showed the ruling National Front Coalition with 111 seats in the 222-seat parliament versus 53 for the opposition, with 58 seats still being tallied.

REFERENDUM ON ABDULLAH

"This looks like a revolution," said Husam Musa, vice president of a hardline Islamist opposition party. "The people have risen and are united. The message to government is, 'Enough is enough'", he told reporters.

The upset has put Abdullah's political future at risk.

"I think the PM will potentially have to resign," said Bridget Welsh, a Malaysia specialist at Johns Hopkins University in the United States. "This is unprecedented. The only other time this happened was in 1969 and that's why everybody is very nervous now because of the uncertainty."

Works Minister Samy Vellu, chief of the Malaysian Indian Congress, one of the parties in the ruling National Front coalition, lost the seat he had held for nearly 30 years, because many Indians thought he was out of touch with their concerns.

Detained ethnic Indian activist and lawyer M. Manoharan delivered another slap in the face of the government, winning a parliamentary seat despite being held under internal-security laws for organising a major anti-government protest last year.

Chinese and Indians account for a third of the population of 26 million and many complain the government discriminates in favour of Malays when it comes to education, jobs, financial assistance and religious policy.

About 70 percent of Malaysia's 10.9 million eligible voters had cast ballots, the country's top poll official said.

Opposition rallies drew big crowds, especially Chinese and Indian voters unhappy with Abdullah's Malay-dominated coalition.

"This clearly shows Malaysians want an alternative. Going forward Malays, Indians and Chinese all have to work together and make a formidable pact," opposition figure Anwar Ibrahim told reporters.

Barisan held 90 percent of the seats in the outgoing federal parliament. Political experts had predicted Abdullah's continued leadership could be in jeopardy if his majority fell back below 80 percent, or around 178 seats, in the new 222-seat parliament.

The economy grew 6 percent last year but inflation and a likely U.S. economic slowdown have fueled worries.

(Additional reporting by Mark Bendeich, Jalil Hamid and Liau Y-Sing)