Government programmes and the GE-13 voting pattern in Selangor

In Malaysia’s national politics, which political party gets todominate the state of Selangor is cruciallysignificant. Being the most advanced, the most populous, andthe most representative demographically, Selangorprovides a good illustration of the influence of government programmes on the voting patternof the last 13th General Elections (GE-13), in particular, when examined via the perception of Selangor voters. This study compares and contrasts Selangor voters’ perceptions of programmes implemented by the Pakatan Rakyat state government led by the People JusticeParty (PKR) and those of the Barisan Nasional federal government (BN). Based on findings of field surveys conducted between February and Mac 2013 the study randomly sampled 1,015 voters of Selangor’s 56 state assembly and 26 parliamentary seats. Data analyses showed that the scores obtained by positively perceived programmes were almost seven percent higher for programmes implemented by the state government than those initiated by the federal government. Hence the victory of the Pakatan Rakyat at the state level with a 2/3 majority. This contrasted sharply with previous general elections of 1959-2004 where Selangor voters always gave undivided support for the Barisan Nasional’s programmes.