AN ILHAM Centre study of 1,250 voters reveals that Johor Menteri Besar (MB) Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi has achieved a 79% popularity rate, nearly double that of Prime Minister (PM) Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (40%).
This makes Onn Hafiz Barisan Nasional’s (BN) most vital asset. BN successfully campaigned on his local track record, political stability, and major projects like the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone and Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS).
Conversely, Pakatan Harapan struggled by over-relying on Anwar’s national influence and federal issues. The popularity of Anwar is also in question, as a former Klang MP, Charles Santiago, says there is intense anger against both Pakatan Harapan (PH) and Anwar, also known as PMX.
Ultimately, the study from ILHAM Centre concludes that state-level performance and local issues – like the cost of living and daily commuting to Singapore – dominated voter choices over national politics.
According to the ILHAM Centre, Onn Hafiz’s advantage was driven by the tendency of voters who place more on the state government’s performance and local development that directly benefits the people.
BN is also seen as the alliance that has successfully built a campaign narrative based on administrative continuity, political stability, and Onn Hafiz’s track record, including the implementation of development projects such as the RTS, data centre development, and JS-SEZ, as well as various state government assistance initiatives.
But the study found that PH relied too heavily on PM’s influence to drive the campaign. According to the report, the approach failed to translate into a significant increase in support for PH.
The study also found that voters prioritised issues of cost of living, job opportunities, affordable housing, traffic congestion, and daily mobility to Singapore over political polemics or debates on social media.
It concluded that Onn Hafiz’s success story in Johor far outclassed that of Anwar’s federal government performance. This is a more dominant factor in influencing voter tendencies compared to the influence of leaders at the national level. — July 11, 2026
Main photo credit: FMT
