4/4 Subhead: Cultivating a community presence
PN’s campaign may be beyond anti-BN sentiments. In fact, the campaign - online and offline - may have been tapping into a market which PAS has long been cultivating.
In a study on PAS’ unshakeable hold on Kelantan, USM analyst Azmil Tayeb said the party’s strength lies in its long-entrenched position in the community, its well-organised machinery, and extensive political education and outreach efforts.
Apart from conveying their messages through mosques, PAS grassroots activists contribute in a network of ‘penghulu seranta’, acting as residential area ambassadors to assemble townhall meetings, listen to grievances and share PAS’ agenda, Azmil found.
Additionally, PAS has organised various community events, including e-sports tournaments and the establishment of an “Alternative Riding Club” (ARC). These initiatives effectively allow PAS to interact with new and first-time voters in a relatable manner.
Some of these ARC convoys, featuring large cohorts of motorcyclists carrying PN or PAS flags, have featured widely in TikTok campaigns, reaching thousands of young voters.
On TikTok, PN supporters’ convoy videos are often used as campaign material.
PAS also extends its influence through Islamic education, seeding what some political watchers call ‘Generation PAS’. Incepted in the 1980s, there are now close to 2,500 PAS pre-schools, providing affordable early childhood education to more than 125,000 students aged four to six years old.
The party has also established close to 150 primary schools and seven secondary schools nationwide, to provide alternative education anchored on Islamic teaching.
In GE15…I chose according to candidate, not party. I followed the campaign via social media, on Facebook and TikTok.
This state election, I am still undecided. I need to discuss this with my family. I think PN will win because (the incumbent MB) Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor is young at heart and young people like him.
But not all are convinced that Islamic education has influenced the voting patterns of a generation of Malaysians, and affected the outcome of GE15.
Academic and former DAP MP Ong Kian Ming said Islamic residential schools (tahfiz) make up just one percent of six million primary and secondary school enrolments, and attributing this to PN’s success in courting young voters is “to compound one analytical mistake on top of another”.
In fact, he said, analysing the PN inroads as a “Green Wave” perpetuates Islamophobic narratives, while ignoring the diversity among Malay voters and the significant gains Bersatu made in 2018. This was the momentum PN had built on, he argued.
“The electoral landscape has become much more competitive and electoral outcomes will depend on many factors. In short, religion is an important but not determinative voting issue,” Ong wrote in a recent analysis.
Similarly, former BN MP Khairy Jamaluddin in a separate commentary said the shift of support to PN was driven by Malay economic discontent, going “beyond the 3R (race, religion, royalty) issues”.
I will vote for Umno/BN, following my family. But if the candidate is from Harapan, I will not vote for them. So I am still open to PN.
Actually, I am not that interested in political developments. My friends are the same. Many of them voted for PN because they feel this is the best option for Muslims.
Subhead: Balancing this world and the next
‘Generation PAS’ or not, in Gombak, Fahmi is yet again gearing up to vote for PN in the Selangor state election, but his mother, Jailah Abdul, hopes he will change his mind.
Jailah has never voted for anyone but Umno/BN.
“BN, especially Umno, has fought for the rights of Malays and has contributed greatly to this nation, including founding this village which we live in, Kampung Wira Damai,” the 68-year-old said.
But in PN, Fahmi sees a middle ground - a balance between his religious obligations and desires for a modern, developed nation.
“I believe in PN because they have both religious leaders and professionals, which means religion can work hand in hand with the modern world.
4/4 Subhead: Cultivating a community presence PN’s campaign may be beyond anti-BN sentiments. In fact, the campaign - online and offline - may have been tapping into a market which PAS has long been cultivating.
In a study on PAS’ unshakeable hold on Kelantan, USM analyst Azmil Tayeb said the party’s strength lies in its long-entrenched position in the community, its well-organised machinery, and extensive political education and outreach efforts.
Apart from conveying their messages through mosques, PAS grassroots activists contribute in a network of ‘penghulu seranta’, acting as residential area ambassadors to assemble townhall meetings, listen to grievances and share PAS’ agenda, Azmil found.
Additionally, PAS has organised various community events, including e-sports tournaments and the establishment of an “Alternative Riding Club” (ARC). These initiatives effectively allow PAS to interact with new and first-time voters in a relatable manner.
Some of these ARC convoys, featuring large cohorts of motorcyclists carrying PN or PAS flags, have featured widely in TikTok campaigns, reaching thousands of young voters.
On TikTok, PN supporters’ convoy videos are often used as campaign material.
PAS also extends its influence through Islamic education, seeding what some political watchers call ‘Generation PAS’. Incepted in the 1980s, there are now close to 2,500 PAS pre-schools, providing affordable early childhood education to more than 125,000 students aged four to six years old.
The party has also established close to 150 primary schools and seven secondary schools nationwide, to provide alternative education anchored on Islamic teaching.
In GE15…I chose according to candidate, not party. I followed the campaign via social media, on Facebook and TikTok.
This state election, I am still undecided. I need to discuss this with my family. I think PN will win because (the incumbent MB) Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor is young at heart and young people like him.
But not all are convinced that Islamic education has influenced the voting patterns of a generation of Malaysians, and affected the outcome of GE15.
Academic and former DAP MP Ong Kian Ming said Islamic residential schools (tahfiz) make up just one percent of six million primary and secondary school enrolments, and attributing this to PN’s success in courting young voters is “to compound one analytical mistake on top of another”.
In fact, he said, analysing the PN inroads as a “Green Wave” perpetuates Islamophobic narratives, while ignoring the diversity among Malay voters and the significant gains Bersatu made in 2018. This was the momentum PN had built on, he argued.
“The electoral landscape has become much more competitive and electoral outcomes will depend on many factors. In short, religion is an important but not determinative voting issue,” Ong wrote in a recent analysis.
Similarly, former BN MP Khairy Jamaluddin in a separate commentary said the shift of support to PN was driven by Malay economic discontent, going “beyond the 3R (race, religion, royalty) issues”. I will vote for Umno/BN, following my family. But if the candidate is from Harapan, I will not vote for them. So I am still open to PN.
Actually, I am not that interested in political developments. My friends are the same. Many of them voted for PN because they feel this is the best option for Muslims. Subhead: Balancing this world and the next ‘Generation PAS’ or not, in Gombak, Fahmi is yet again gearing up to vote for PN in the Selangor state election, but his mother, Jailah Abdul, hopes he will change his mind. Jailah has never voted for anyone but Umno/BN. “BN, especially Umno, has fought for the rights of Malays and has contributed greatly to this nation, including founding this village which we live in, Kampung Wira Damai,” the 68-year-old said.
But in PN, Fahmi sees a middle ground - a balance between his religious obligations and desires for a modern, developed nation.
“I believe in PN because they have both religious leaders and professionals, which means religion can work hand in hand with the modern world.