General Information
At stake in this election:
- 222 seats in the House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat)
Description of government structure:
- Chief of State: Sultan MIZAN Zainal Abidin
- Head of Government: Prime Minister ABDULLAH bin Ahmad Badawi
- Assembly: Malaysia has a bicameral Parliament (Parlimen) consisting of the Senate (Dewan Negara) with 70 seats and the House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat) with 222 seats.
Description of electoral system:
- The Sultan is elected by hereditary state rulers to serve a 5-year term.
- The Prime Minister is designated by parliament.
- In the Senate (Dewan Negara), 44 members are appointed by the monarch to serve 3-year terms and 26 members are elected by the state legislatures to serve 3-year terms*. In the House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat) 222 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms.
* 44 seats appointed by paramount ruler, 26 elected by 13 state legislatures
Main parties in the electoral race:
- Party: United Malays National Organization (UMNO)
- Leader: ABDULLAH bin Ahmad Badawi
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 79
- Party: People's Justice Party / Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
- Leader: WAN AZIZAH Wan Ismael
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 31
- Party: Islamic Party of Malaysia / Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS)
- Leader: Abdul HADI Awang
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 23
- Party: Democratic Action Party (DAP) / Parti Tindakan Demokratik
- Leader: KARPAL Singh
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 28
- Party: Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) / Persatuan Cina Malaysia; 马来西亚华人公会
- Leader: ONG Ka Ting
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 15
- Party: Malaysian People's Movement Party / Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (Gerakan)
- Leader: KOH Tsu Koon
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 2
- Party: Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) / Kongres India Se-Malaysia; மலேசிய இந்திய காங்கிரஸ்
- Leader: S. Samy VELLU
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 3
- Party: United Traditional Bumiputera Party / Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB)
- Leader: Abdul TAIB Mahmud
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 14
- Party: Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) / Parti Rakyat Bersatu Sarawak; 砂拉越人民联合党
- Leader: George CHAN Hong Nam
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 6
- Party: United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation / (UPKO)
- Leader: Bernard DOMPOK
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 4
- Party: Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) / Parti Demokratik Progresif Sarawak
- Leader: William MAWAN
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 4
- Party: United Sabah Party / Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS)
- Leader: Joseph PAIRIN Kitingan
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 3
- Party: Sarawak People's Party / Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS)
- Leader: James Masing
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 6
- Party: Sabah Progressive Party / Parti Maju Sabah (SAPP)
- Leader: YONG Teck Lee
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 2
- Party: Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) / Parti Liberal Demokratik; 自由民主党
- Leader: LIEW Vui Keong
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 1
- Party: People's Progressive Party (PPP) / Parti Progresif Penduduk
- Leader: M. Kayveas
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 0
- Party: Non-partisans/Others
- Leader: N/A
- Seats won in this House of Representatives election: 0
Population and number of registered voters:
- Population: 27,197,419 (2008)
- Registered Voters: 10,740,227 (2008)
Gender Data:
· Female Population: 13,208,718 (2008)
· Is Malaysia a signatory to CEDAW: No
· Has Malaysia ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (5 July 1995)
· Gender Quota: No
· Female candidates in this election: Yes
· Number of Female Parliamentarians: 24 (House of Representatives) (following the 2008 elections)
· Human Development Index Position: 62 (2014)
· Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A
Disability Data:
· Is Malaysia a signatory to CRPD: Yes (8 April 2008)
· Has Malaysia ratified CRPD: Yes (19 July 2010)
· Population with a disability: 4,079,612 (est.)