The politics of locality in the 2008 Malaysian parliamentary election: case study in Santubong and Petra Java, Sarawak

Abstract

Barisan Nasional (BN) did not perform well in the Malaysia's 12th general election. BN lost five out of 12 state legislatures and lost more than one-third of the parliamentary seats. Unlike in the previous elections BN also failed to secure two third majority. However, the sentiments in Borneo was different when both Sarawak and Sabah BN emerged "victorious" by wi nning 54 out of 56 seats contested. In Sarawak, BN candidates in Santubong and Petra Jaya constituencies indirectly contributed to the "big win" by securing more than 60 percent of the total votes. This paper examines the role of "local factors" in both constituencies and how they impacted the electoral outcome.