Spotlight on Malaysia's king to resolve election stalemate

Malaysias election uncertainty deepened Tuesday after a political bloc refused to support either reformist leader Anwar Ibrahim or rival Malay nationalist Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister, three days after divisive polls produced no outright winner.The stalemate put the spotlight on the nations ceremonial king, who summoned the two leaders to resolve the impasse.Anwars Pakatan Harapan, or Alliance of Hope, topped Saturdays elections with 83 parliamentary seats, but failed to reach the 112 needed for a majority.

Malaysia's election uncertainty deepened Tuesday after a political bloc refused to support either reformist leader Anwar Ibrahim or rival Malay nationalist Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister, three days after divisive polls produced no outright winner.

The stalemate put the spotlight on the nation's ceremonial king, who summoned the two leaders to resolve the impasse.

Anwar's Pakatan Harapan, or Alliance of Hope, topped Saturday's elections with 83 parliamentary seats, but failed to reach the 112 needed for a majority. He has been locked in a battle to form a majority government with former Prime Minister Muhyiddin, whose Malay-centric Perikatan Nasional, or National Alliance, won 72 seats.

Both rivals need the backing of the long-ruling alliance led by the United Malays National Organisation, which has 30 seats, for a majority. But UMNO's National Front alliance decided Tuesday not to support any group to form a government and remain as the opposition.

An influential bloc from Borneo island, which earlier supported Muhyiddin, now said it will leave it to the king to decide.

Malaysia's monarch, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, summoned both Anwar and Muhyiddin to the palace to resolve the impasse. The king's role is largely ceremonial but he appoints the person he believes has majority support in Parliament as prime minister.

After asking parties to submit their choice for prime minister, the palace earlier said the king found no lawmaker has majority support to clinch the top job.

"There is no decision yet at this point," Anwar told reporters outside the palace. He said Sultan Abdullah expressed his desire for a stable and inclusive government during the meeting.

"For now there is no question of forming a minority government," Anwar said, adding that all sides will wait for the king's final decision.

Muhyiddin's bloc includes a hard-line Islamic ally, stoking fears of right-wing politics that may deepen racial divides in the multiethnic nation if it comes to power. The Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party was the biggest winner with a haul of 49 seats — more than double what it won in 2018.

Known as PAS, it backs Islamic Shariah law, rules three states and is now the single largest party.

The drama is a replay of political turmoil in Malaysia, which has seen three prime ministers since 2018 polls.

In early 2020, Muhyiddin abandoned Anwar's ruling alliance, causing its collapse, and joined hands with UMNO to form a new government.

Sultan Abdullah at the time requested written oaths from all 222 lawmakers and later interviewed them separately before picking Muhyiddin as prime minister. But Muhyiddin's government was beset by internal rivalries and he resigned after 17 months.

For a second time, the monarch sought written statements from lawmakers before appointing UMNO's Ismail Sabri Yaakob as the new leader.

Ismail called for early polls at the behest of UMNO leaders as the party was convinced it could make a strong comeback amid a fragmented opposition. Instead, ethnic majority Malays, fed up with corruption and infighting in the party, opted for Muhyiddin's bloc.

Many rural Malays, who form two-thirds of Malaysia's 33 million people — which includes large minorities of ethnic Chinese and Indians — also fear they may lose their rights with greater pluralism under Anwar's multiethnic alliance.