One story from every party, Melaka polls take centre stage

The Melaka state election on 14 November 2026 has kept most parties busy since the start of October. Nomination is on 31 October and early voting on 10 November. Outside Melaka, the exco crisis in Negeri Sembilan and the Budget 2027 debate in the Dewan Rakyat also drew statements from party leaders.

Here is one story from each party, taken from mainstream news reports between 2 and 13 October 2026.

Pakatan Harapan

PKR wants eight to nine seats in Melaka

PKR is aiming to contest eight to nine seats in the Melaka election, including Machap, Ayer Keroh and Rembia, FMT reported on 11 October. The Prime Minister's political secretary, Azman Abidin, said Pakatan Harapan (PH) would name its candidates on 18 October, with the remaining seats going to coalition partners. PH is expected to contest 18 to 21 seats, but the figure still needs the PH presidential council's approval.

DAP: No reason to delay new Negeri Sembilan excos

DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke said there is no reason for the Negeri Sembilan government to put off appointing new state executive councillors, Malaysiakini reported on 11 October. According to the report, on 16 September the state exco declared valid a proclamation to replace the Yang di-Pertuan Besar, Tuanku Muhriz, with Tunku Nadzaruddin Tuanku Ja'afar, but failed to get it gazetted. Tuanku Muhriz then revoked the appointments of all 10 exco members, leaving Menteri Besar Datuk Ismail Lasim as the only member left.

Loke called it unusual for a state government to have a menteri besar but no excos, since many decisions have to go through exco meetings. He said BN still has a majority in the assembly, but DAP must be ready for anything, including a fresh election. Malay Mail reported that Loke also said the crisis was not of DAP's making, as the party is no longer in the state government.

Amanah: Mat Sabu tells Melaka voters to learn from Negeri Sembilan

Amanah president Mohamad Sabu urged Melaka voters to back PH on 14 November, pointing to the crisis in Negeri Sembilan, FMT reported on 9 October. He said BN started that crisis in April by withdrawing support from then Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun, and compared it to the 2020 Sheraton Move. PH has yet to decide whether to form an electoral pact or go it alone in Melaka.

Barisan Nasional

UMNO: The Prime Minister is not the Public Prosecutor

UMNO information chief Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said prosecutorial independence cannot be compromised, The Star reported on 13 October. She was responding to Jelutong MP RSN Rayer, who had urged the Prime Minister to make sure a certain individual is charged again.

Azalina said the Prime Minister is not the Public Prosecutor, and that Article 145(3) of the Federal Constitution gives the Attorney General the discretion to start, conduct or discontinue proceedings. Different outcomes in different cases, she said, do not automatically prove political interference. The statement also noted that the Federal Court has granted leave to appeal in the Yayasan Akalbudi case, the Malaysian Bar's challenge involving UMNO president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

MCA: Wee wants BN to bring back GST if it wins GE16

MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said BN should reintroduce the goods and services tax (GST) if it wins the next general election, The Star reported on 8 October. He made the call at the 12th BN Forum on 7 October, describing it as a coalition priority under the Agenda Malaysia Biru. Wee said e-invoicing already reflects GST features that are still used in the SST, and that more than 170 countries use a VAT or GST system.

MIC to campaign across Melaka despite contesting one seat

MIC will campaign throughout Melaka to help BN, even though it is contesting only one seat, party president Tan Sri SA Vigneswaran said, NST reported on 12 October. That seat is Gadek, which MIC won in 2021, according to FMT. Vigneswaran said MIC won nearly 49% of the Indian vote in the Negeri Sembilan election even though it lost both seats it contested there.

Opposition

PAS: Melaka talks with BN at final stage

PAS central committee member Tan Sri Annuar Musa said cooperation talks with BN for the Melaka election are at the final stage, The Star reported on 13 October. PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang said on 10 October that both sides had agreed in principle, but seats and candidates were still being discussed. On the BN side, UMNO secretary-general Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said seat talks were 90% done, Malay Mail reported. Perikatan Nasional (PN) expects to contest more than four seats, depending on talks with UMNO.

Bersatu: Selangor assemblymen to sign a pact with the state government

Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said Bersatu assemblymen will sign a pact resembling a confidence and supply agreement (CSA) with the state government before the 2027 state budget is tabled, expected in November, FMT reported on 8 October. The terms are still being negotiated. The deal covers Bersatu's 11 assemblymen, who would become government backbenchers, and is modelled on the 2021 agreement between the Ismail Sabri government and PH.

Not every Bersatu assemblyman is on board. Permatang assemblywoman Nurul Syazwani Noh said she had not been told about the pact. Bersatu Youth chief Hilman Idham, meanwhile, dismissed claims that the party wants to team up with PH, FMT reported on 10 October.

Wawasan: Hamzah says leave Petronas, TNB and KWAP out of politics

Opposition leader and Parti Wawasan Negara president Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin urged the government not to burden Petronas, Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) and KWAP with political decisions, during the Budget 2027 debate in the Dewan Rakyat on 12 October, FMT reported. He cited more than RM163 billion in Petronas dividends projected for 2023 to 2027, and said raising the electricity bill protection threshold had cost TNB RM150 million. Hamzah also questioned KWAP's role in development projects, since the fund's job is to earn safe returns for pensioners.

Gerakan: PN gets leave to challenge RoS suspension

The High Court has allowed PN to seek a judicial review of the Registrar of Societies (RoS) order that suspended all of the coalition's activities from 23 September, The Star reported on 13 October. Justice Azizan Md Arshad refused an interim stay, so the suspension stays in force for now. PN's stay application will be heard on 22 October.

Gerakan secretary-general Wong Chia Zhen is one of the applicants, together with the secretaries-general of PAS, MIPP, Wawasan and Pejuang. The suspension affects PN's use of its name and logo in the Melaka election.

Sabah and Sarawak

GPS: Sarawak Budget 2027 tabled, assembly may be dissolved in November

Sarawak Premier and GPS chairman Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg tabled the Sarawak Budget 2027 in the state assembly on 12 October, The Star reported. The state expects revenue of RM15.091 billion against ordinary expenditure of RM14.845 billion, a surplus of RM246 million. Development spending gets RM10.098 billion. The 12 to 21 October sitting is the last of the term, and PBB information chief Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said the assembly could be dissolved in November, Borneo Post reported.

GRS aims for more than 15 parliamentary seats in Sabah

GRS is targeting more than 15 of Sabah's 25 parliamentary seats at GE16, secretary-general Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali said, The Star reported on 6 October. He said simulations based on the November 2025 state election show GRS can realistically win 14 to 15 seats, but 14 is not enough. UPKO is now the coalition's sixth component party. GRS will review its five-year record at the GRS Convention 2026 in Kudat on 18 October, with about 2,500 people expected.

Warisan: Shafie and Leiking returned unopposed

Warisan president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal and his deputy, Datuk Darell Leiking, were returned unopposed after nominations for the party polls closed on 12 October, The Star reported. Secretary-general Loretto Padua said eight nominations were received for three vice-president posts, and 39 candidates for 20 supreme council seats. The party's annual general meeting is in Sandakan on 24 and 25 October.

Other parties

PSM wants a fixed procedure after every audit report

PSM chairman Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj wants a standard procedure after every Auditor-General's Report so that its findings are investigated, acted on and reported, FMT reported on 2 October. Issues in audit reports make the news, he said, but after that it goes quiet. The 2026 Auditor-General's Report Series 1, tabled in February, flagged 273 financial management and governance issues at federal and state level. The proposal was part of PSM's wish list for Budget 2027, which also asked for the My50 transit pass to be cut from RM50 to RM30.

Full story for each party

• PKR: PKR eyes eight to nine seats in Melaka state election
• DAP: Loke, No reason to delay new Negeri Sembilan excos
• Amanah: Mat Sabu tells Melaka voters to learn from Negeri Sembilan crisis
• UMNO: Azalina, The Prime Minister is not the Public Prosecutor
• MCA: Wee Ka Siong says BN should bring back GST if it wins GE16
• MIC: MIC to campaign across Melaka despite contesting one seat
• PAS: PAS-BN talks for Melaka polls at final stage
• Bersatu: Bersatu's 11 Selangor reps to sign CSA-style pact with state
• Wawasan: Hamzah, Don't burden Petronas, TNB and KWAP with political decisions
• Gerakan: PN gets leave to challenge RoS suspension, activities stay frozen
• GPS: Sarawak Budget 2027 tabled, assembly may be dissolved in November
• GRS: GRS targets more than 15 Sabah parliamentary seats in GE16
• Warisan: Shafie and Leiking returned unopposed as Warisan's top two
• PSM: PSM wants a fixed procedure to act on audit report findings

Key dates

• 18 October: PH names its Melaka candidates. GRS Convention in Kudat.
• 21 October: Sarawak assembly sitting ends.
• 22 October: High Court hears PN's application to stay the RoS suspension.
• 24 and 25 October: Warisan annual general meeting in Sandakan.
• 31 October: Melaka nomination day. Early voting on 10 November and polling on 14 November.

Sources

• FMT, PKR eyes 8 to 9 seats in Melaka polls
• Malaysiakini, N Sembilan crisis: No reason to delay new excos' appointments - Loke
• Malay Mail, 'Negeri Sembilan crisis is not DAP's fault', says Anthony Loke
• FMT, Learn from Negeri Sembilan crisis, Mat Sabu tells Melaka voters
• The Star, Prosecutorial independence cannot be compromised, Umno tells Jelutong MP
• The Star, BN should bring back GST if it wins next election, says Dr Wee
• NST, MIC to campaign statewide for BN in Melaka election
• FMT, MIC to defend Gadek in Melaka polls, says Saravanan
• The Star, Melaka polls: PAS-BN talks at final stage, says Annuar Musa
• Malay Mail, Asyraf says BN's Melaka seat talks 90pc complete, urges trust in Muslim political pact
• FMT, Bersatu reps to sign CSA-like pact with S'gor govt before state budget
• FMT, I wasn't informed, says Bersatu rep over Selangor govt pact
• FMT, Youth chief scoffs at claim of Bersatu yearning for PH pact
• FMT, Don't burden nation's 'golden geese' with political decisions, says Hamzah
• The Star, High Court grants Perikatan leave to challenge Registrar of Societies suspension order
• The Star, Sarawak tables RM246mil surplus budget for 2027, projects RM15.09bil in revenue
• Bernama, Empat RUU, Belanjawan 2027 Jadi Tumpuan Persidangan Terakhir DUN Sarawak
• Borneo Post, Sarawak DUN could be dissolved this November, says Abd Karim
• The Star, GRS targets over 15 Sabah parliamentary seats in GE16 push
• The Star, Shafie, Leiking returned unopposed as Warisan top leaders
• FMT, PSM calls for formal system to ensure action on audit findings