IT is possible for Perak Barisan Nasional to win more seats, including non-Malay seats, in the 14th General Election if suitable candidates are fielded, say political analysts.
Universiti Sains Malaysia political analyst Professor Dr Sivamurugan Pandian acknowledged that all 18 seats dominated by DAP were hard to wrest back, but there were several seats that BN could potentially win.
“BN, through its component parties — MCA, MIC, Gerakan and MyPPP — had won several non-Malay seats before and this will probably happen again, or they could cut down the majority secured by the opposition if the right candidate, one who has been working in the area for a long time, is fielded.
“Voters these days are very concerned about the candidates fielded as they want to know whether he or she can do the job.”
He said although there were some disputes in nominating the candidates for several seats, such as for the Buntong state seat involving MyPPP and MIC, the party should find the best way to resolve the matter to prevent protest votes.
“The matter will only be detrimental to the party since Buntong is the only state seat with a high number of Indian voters.
“Extra attention must be given to the seat to end the dispute.
“The Hutan Melintang seat should not be taken lightly as BN can regain it if the candidate is well accepted by the people and in particular, MIC members, as it is a traditional seat for MIC.”
For seats involving MCA-DAP or Gerakan-DAP contests, Sivamurugan said hard work could help reduce the majority of the opposition.
“Besides, MCA should consider several factors before naming its candidates in the two seats it won before — the Chenderiang seat won by Perak MCA chairman Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon and the Tanjung Malim parliamentary constituency secured by Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan, who is second international trade and industry minister.
“Whether candidates should maintain or swap seats must be considered to avoid protest or spoilt votes,” he added.
Sivamurugan said the voting pattern was unique to the Tanjung Malim parliamentary seat because it had mainly Malay voters. This could be a winning factor for BN.
In the last general election, out of 59 state seats BN contested in Perak, it won 31 seats while the opposition won 28.
DAP won 18 seats. PKR won five seats in which three were represented by Chinese candidates, one Malay candidate and one Indian candidate. Pas won five seats.