Malaysian PM faces risk of losing seat with party in limbo, says PKR analysis

MALAYSIA: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim is at risk of losing his seat, while many of the current top leaders backing him in the government risk being toppled in the next General Elections in Malaysia.

This assessment comes from an internal PKR strategic analysis presented on May 2, 2026, at a party meeting.

It highlighted what most people already know, that Anwar’s party is damaged after it resisted calls to bring reforms and to implement its electoral programme.

It says only seven of their currently held 31 seats are considered safe. Many others are listed as high-risk or requiring significant recovery.

For a party that is said to have a target of 80 seats for the next election, this is very bad. Added to the internal rift opposing former Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli and his followers, which includes nine to 10 MPs, including Anwar, is also a very damaging blow to the party.

One of the most important elements in the analysis is that Anwar’s seat is at risk. Anwar was elected in the Tambun constituency in the state of Perak.

The seat has been classified as marginal, which is a startling development indeed for a sitting Prime Minister.

There are also reports that his former seat in Penang would not be secure altogether. Anwar’s daughter, Nurul Izzah Anwar, was defeated in the same seat in 2022.

The document titled “GE16 Strategic Analysis: Summary by Tier” is published by Malaysiakini. It says PKR is now a party operating in alert mode, struggling with the reality that its control over key seats is increasingly eroding.

The study focused on a total of 66 parliamentary seats for the coming general election.

PKR classified those seats into four categories (Tiers) to map out their strengths and risks ahead of GE16.

Seven seats are placed in Tier 1 (strong/safe), 13 seats in Tier 2A (almost strong), 17 seats in Tier 2B (marginal/competitive), and 29 seats in Tier 3 (difficult/recovery).

That means a majority of the seats, 46 in total in Tier 2B and Tier 3, are in high-risk zones or in danger.

Some mixed parliamentary seats listed in Tier 2A and 2B are Lembah Pantai (Fahmi Fadzil – Communications Minister), Nibong Tebal (Fadhlina Sidek – Education Minister), Johor Bahru (Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir – Economy Minister) and Sungai Petani (Taufiq Johari – Youth and Sports Minister).

Without any surprises, four of the seats that are ‘safe’ are in the hands of the group headed by former deputy president Rafizi Ramli.

Besides Rafizi (Pandan), the parliamentary seats in the safest zone are Subang (Wong Chen), Petaling Jaya (Lee Chean Chung) and Ampang (Rodziah Ismail). These three leaders are labelled as Rafizi’s allies in PKR.