A by-election was held for the Dewan Rakyat parliamentary seat of Permatang Pauh on 26 August 2008 with nomination day on 16 August 2008.[1][2] The seat of Permatang Pauh in the Dewan Rakyat, fell vacant after the resignation of the incumbent, Datuk SeriWan Azizah Wan Ismail, on 31 July 2008. Wan Azizah was the Leader of the Opposition as well as the President of the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), a component party of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition.[3] The by-election was contested by the PR candidate former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. This election has been dubbed "the mother of all by-elections" by the media due to the potentially significant implication of the election as well as the high profile of Anwar Ibrahim.[4]
Anwar won the election and was sworn into Parliament on 28 August 2008,[5][6] vowing to topple the government with the help of defectors from Barisan Nasional.[7][8]
Background of the by-election
On 27 July 2008, Anwar said that he aimed to return to parliament for the first time in a decade later that year if a court ordered a by-election near his home town. The seat mentioned would probably be Kulim-Bandar Baharu constituency next to his hometown of Permatang Pauh in Penang.[9] Anwar Ibrahim on 31 July 2008 said he would contest a by-election for the parliamentary seat of Permatang Pauh vacated by his wife to expedite his return to political office. His wife Wan Azizah said she handed her letter of resignation to the parliament speaker on Thursday 31 July. Party officials said the by-election must be held within 60 days.[10] The Election Commission (EC) had fixed the nomination day for the Permatang Pauh by-election on 16 August, with polling to be held ten days later on 26 August. Some 58,459 voters in the Permatang Pauh constituency would be eligible to vote on 26 August, a working Tuesday, adding that the figure also include 490 postal voters.[2]
Anwar Ibrahim was charged on 7 August 2008 for sodomy under Section 377B of the Penal Code, fueling speculations over a possible conspiracy on the part of the Malaysian government to derail his election campaign.[11]
Anwar said: "Barisan Nasional is clearly overwhelmed. It's no longer a by-election. It's more than that." Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak admitted the ruling party was the underdog: "It is going to be an uphill task but nothing is impossible in politics."[13]
By-election results
Early results indicated a landslide victory for Anwar. Reuters reported "Anwar Ibrahim has won with a majority of 16,210 votes.[14] According to news website Malaysiakini: Anwar won 26,646 votes, while the government's Arif Omar won 10,436 votes. Anwar's People's Justice Party spokeswoman Ginie Lim told BBC: "We won already. We are far ahead."[15]
Final results announced by the Election Commission reveals Anwar Ibrahim won 31,195 of the estimated 47,000 votes cast in the district in the northern state of Penang, while rival Arif Shah Omar Shah got only 15,524 votes and a third candidate had 92 votes.[19][20][21]
Malaysian general by-election, 26 August 2008: Permatang Pauh The by-election was called due to the resignation of incumbent, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.
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