SEREMBAN, July 22 — Pakatan Harapan is focusing on locality-based micro-campaigns to deliver the coalition’s message and election pledges directly to the grassroots for the 16th Negeri Sembilan election, said bloc election director Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari.
He said the small-group approach is more effective as it focuses on addressing local issues and meeting the specific needs of each community without touching on personal matters.
However, he said large-scale events and talks are still important, especially for the campaign finale, to showcase the strength and unity of the coalition machinery while attracting fence-sitters.
“In Negeri Sembilan, Harapan is leading the state government... the stability demonstrated during its first term will be a key selling point.
“Harapan has a strong track record, including increasing the state’s reserves and stimulating economic activity with growth of between 25 and 28 per cent. This will reinforce the confidence of opinion leaders and decision-makers to support the coalition with a strong majority,” he told Bernama here today.
Amirudin, who is also Selangor menteri besar, said the effectiveness of the micro-campaign strategy has been further strengthened by Harapan’s well-established grassroots machinery in Negeri Sembilan, which has been firmly in place since the coalition was given the mandate to govern the state in 2018.
Commenting on improvements to the strategy compared with the recently concluded Johor election, he said Harapan is placing greater emphasis this time on ensuring message consistency and strengthening coordination among the component parties’ campaign machinery to ensure a more organised campaign.
Beyond its campaign strategy, Amirudin is optimistic that Harapan’s administrative track record under the leadership of Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun from 2018 will be a key benchmark for voters in choosing political stability in the state.
On the cooperation between Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) in the state election, Amirudin said the strategy reflects the new reality of the country’s political landscape, where parties have continued to seek the best coalition formula since the 2018 general election.
He said past experience has shown that every political alliance faces its own challenges, particularly in maintaining consensus, allocating seats and aligning its direction when contesting elections.
Amirudin said the strength of a political coalition should not be judged solely on the outcome of a single election, but rather on its ability to sustain consensus and manage challenges over the long term.
In the 2023 state election, Harapan won 17 seats, BN secured 14, and PN hauled five.
Early voting for the Negeri Sembilan election is on July 28, with polling day on August 1.
