Abstract
Abstract Malaysia’s Pakatan Haparan coalition unexpectedly defeated the Barisan National (National Front) coalition government in the May 2018 general election. This electoral breakthrough defied the predictions of seasoned political observers and leading opinion polls, bucked international trends in the direction of authoritarian resilience and political backsliding and overcame the advantages of gerrymandering, malapportionment and entrenched incumbency. The article attempts to make sense of Pakatan Harapan’s startling electoral feat by employing frameworks which centre on elections as a mode of democratic transition and democratic learning. Malaysia’s 2018 electoral breakthrough is placed within the context of earlier competitive elections and the struggle of Pakatan Harapan coalition and democratic civil society to maintain cohesion – between, during and after election campaigns. Also considered are the role of ‘recycled elites’ and civil society in reshaping electoral contests through the processes of democratic learning, narrative construction and the reformulation of nation-building paradigms.
Published Version
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