DAP’s wipeout in the recent Sabah state election has triggered intense debate over Chinese voting trends, but former Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin believes the seismic swing against DAP there does not automatically spell the end of its support among Chinese voters nationwide.
Speaking on his “Keluar Sekejap” podcast with former Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming, Khairy argued that the 51-point swing away from DAP in six seats it previously held was largely driven by the presence of a viable alternative in Warisan – a condition he says does not yet exist in Peninsular Malaysia.
Ong said his calculations showed that in the six seats DAP held before the Sabah polls, the party’s average vote share among voters had been around 78%, describing them as “Chinese-majority strongholds”.
Based on the latest results, however, he estimated that DAP’s support in those areas had fallen to just 27%, with most of the swing going to Warisan candidates.
Khairy said a swing of that magnitude could not be explained purely by local candidate or campaign issues, but instead reflected a broader shift in how the Chinese community viewed DAP as a governing party.
He argued that over the past three years, DAP had made a series of compromises in government, and those compromises were being judged against the party’s previously uncompromising “moral high ground” stance while in opposition.
“When you start from a very high moral platform and then are seen to compromise once in power, the fall will be especially hard and long,” he said, adding that complacency and arrogance often creep in once any party attains power, not just DAP.
Albert Tei controversy as a trigger
Both Khairy and Ong also discussed the impact of whistleblower businessman Albert Tei’s expose and the subsequent MACC raid on his home on the Sabah campaign mood.
Ong said many voters – especially those considering travelling back to Kota Kinabalu to vote – would naturally compare DAP’s muted response now with how it would have reacted in the past if similar allegations had emerged against Barisan Nasional while DAP was still in opposition.
He noted that the timing of the expose and the raid, happening just before polling day, coupled with Shamsul Iskandar’s arrest and resignation, left DAP leaders with little space to speak out in a way that satisfied their traditional base.
“To many voters, this episode symbolised DAP’s fall from the moral high ground into the compromises of realpolitik. The Sabah results are a concentrated reflection of that perception,” he said.
However, Ong stressed that it would be simplistic to say the entire 51-point swing was caused only by the Albert Tei episode. Instead, he described it as the culmination of years of accumulated frustration and disappointment with how the reform agenda and anti-corruption promises have played out.
Khairy: Sabah “lesson” depends on presence of a viable alternative
Khairy cautioned against assuming that Sabah’s outcome can be easily replicated in Peninsular Malaysia, saying that the key factor was the existence of a credible alternative like Warisan in those seats.
“What happened to DAP in Sabah can only happen where there is a viable alternative. Without that, most Chinese voters will not simply switch to other parties,” he said.
He reiterated his long-held view that Chinese voters in the peninsula remain DAP’s core and loyal base.
“In Peninsular Malaysia, Chinese voters are still DAP’s staunch supporters. Come hell or high water, at worst they may stay home and not vote – but they are unlikely to suddenly flock to another party,” he said.
Asked about the possibility of a “third force” emerging in the peninsula to challenge DAP among Chinese voters, both men said it was still too early to tell, and that any such force would need to offer a compelling and credible policy platform rather than merely banking on protest votes.
Ong described the Sabah results as “a useful but serious warning” to DAP and Pakatan Harapan, saying that if they fail to address disillusionment over corruption, governance and reform, similar backlash could eventually surface in Peninsular Malaysia.
