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Leader of the Malaysian opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan, and former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has won the seat of Tambun, Perak, while the other major coalition Prime Ministerial candidates also kept their seats.

Barisan Nasional's Ismail Sabri Yaakob has retained his seat of Bera, Pahang while Perikatan Nasional's Muhyiddin Yassin has likewise retained his Pagoh, Johor seat.

Three cornered fight

According to the New Straits Times, opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim won his Tambun seat by around 5,300 votes.

He received around 32,000 votes, beating his closest rival and seat incumbent Ahmad Faizal Azumu of Perikatan Nasional.

Tambun was considered tricky because the incumbent, Ahmad Faizal Azumu of Bersatu, is a local candidate whereas Anwar is a newcomer, having left his previous seat of Port Dickson to compete in Perak.

But Anwar has relentlessly worked the ground during the campaign period, with supporters engaging in a "billboard war" with Faizal.

https://twitter.com/Airilezuan/status/1591576573077254145

MalaysiaKini labeled the contest a "Goliath vs David" fight where Goliath, Anwar, looked set to crush David.

MalaysiaKini also said that local voters were enamoured by the idea of having a potential Prime Minister as their MP, which would be the case if Anwar's PH were to secure enough seats to form a government.

Anwar's rallies have been well-attended, including a rain-soaked final rally.

Amanat Dari Tambun Untuk Malaysia

Saya merayu kepada rakyat Malaysia untuk berani buat perubahan dengan singkirkan kerajaan yang korup, khianat serta tidak peduli nasib dan kebajikan mereka.#UndiHarapan#KitaBoleh#MalaysiaBangkit pic.twitter.com/9Kq5Vme2OQ

— Anwar Ibrahim (@anwaribrahim) November 18, 2022

Anwar has also promised not to take a salary should he become Prime Minister.

Should Anwar's PH win, this would be the culmination of a political journey that has seen him nearly become Prime Minister twice before, only to fall at seemingly the last hurdle.

Safe Seats

While Anwar took the challenging role of unseating an incumbent rival, his main opponents remained in safe seats.

BN's Ismail Sabri Yaakob, the current caretaker prime minister, as well as Umno vice-president, has officially won his seat of Bera in Pahang. Ismail has been representing the seat since 2004.

Ismail Sabri has repeatedly been identified as Barisan Nasional's prime ministerial candidate, despite rumours that Umno party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had his eye on the top job.

Meanwhile, Muhyiddin Yassin defended his seat of Pagoh.

Muhyiddin, a former prime minister, could see his Perikatan Nasional coalition end up taking more seats than Barisan Nasional, although it remains to be seen if either could secure a majority in parliament.

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Top image by Anwar Ibrahim/Facebook