By Amar Shah Mohsen
SHAH ALAM, Aug 7 — The Pakatan Harapan-Barisan Nasional (Harapan-BN) Unity pact is expected to defend Selangor, Penang and Negeri Sembilan while making inroads in states under Perikatan Nasional (PN).
This was the projection made by Keadilan deputy president Rafizi Ramli based on his observation of the six states ahead of the August 12 election.
Speaking on BFM's The Breakfast Grille programme, Rafizi pointed out that his readings of Harapan-held states have been very positive so far, with only the margin of victory yet to be ascertained.
"The next one week will determine whether we will continue to have the kind of supermajority we used to have (in these three states)," he said.
In the last election, Harapan won 51 out of 56 seats in Selangor, 37 out of 40 in Penang and 20 out 36 in Negeri Sembilan.
This time, the coalition heads into the elections with its new partner BN, following cooperation at the federal level.
As for Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, Rafizi expressed confidence that, even if it fails to capture the states, the Harapan-BN pact will win more seats compared to the final composition of the respective state assemblies prior to their dissolution in June.
Taking Kedah for example, the Keadilan leader said if things pick up in the final week of campaigning, the Unity pact should be able to close the gap on PN.
"We may be able to challenge them enough that even if PAS returns to power, it won't be a supermajority that they have been boasting about."
Similarly, Rafizi said the Unity Government parties will surprise many in Kelantan and Terengganu.
"The biggest jump in support is actually in Kelantan. And in Terengganu, we are seeing numbers beyond a 30 per cent support for Harapan when traditionally we only pull less than 10 per cent.
"What is uncertain now is whether this kind of jump in support will help us cross the line, because this is a first past the post election after all."
On Harapan's cooperation with BN in the state polls, Rafizi said the partnership has worked much better than he initially anticipated, with negotiations, in large parts, going very smoothly.
This is a far cry from the negotiations that Harapan had with other parties in the past, like PAS and Bersatu, the economy minister added.
"I've negotiated seat distributions for more than a decade, and negotiating with PAS was painful a decade ago. Negotiating with Tun (Dr Mahathir Mohamad) and Bersatu involved a lot of walkouts and screaming. It was extremely painful.
"So, I went to negotiate with BN expecting the worst, but it has been rather smooth. We agreed on certain parameters and negotiated on principles. I think that's the kind of common ground that made it easier for Harapan and BN to work together."
