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Sabah polls: Distrust, anger among Chinese community culminated in major electoral backlash
Chin, a professor of Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania, said this sense of distrust merged with anger directed at the Democratic Action Party (DAP), culminated in a major electoral backlash
Updated 25 minutes ago · Published on 01 Dec 2025 5:37PM
Frustration had been simmering for some time among voters, said Chin - December 1, 2025
by Alfian Z.M. Tahir
GROWING discontent among Chinese voters over Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s decision to pursue an appeal involving Sabah’s 40 per cent revenue entitlement has compounded Pakatan Harapan’s setback in the recent state election, said political analyst Professor James Chin.
Although Anwar insisted the federal government was merely challenging the wording of the judgment and not the state’s constitutional rights, many voters—particularly in Sabah’s urban Chinese community—felt misled and interpreted the move as a retreat from long-promised autonomy.
Chin, a professor of Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania, said this sense of distrust merged with anger directed at the Democratic Action Party (DAP), culminated in a major electoral backlash.
He noted that PH’s component party suffered severe losses partly because urban Chinese voters believed DAP had drifted away from local priorities.
According to him, frustration had been simmering for some time among voters who felt that DAP leaders in Peninsular Malaysia were exerting excessive influence over the party’s Sabah chapter.
“Many Chinese voters were already unhappy with how DAP performed while in government in Sabah. They felt the party could not clearly articulate what it had delivered for urban communities,” he said.
Chin added that resentment intensified when two sitting Members of Parliament were fielded as state candidates, a move voters viewed as a political overreach.
“To many, it looked like politicians wanting to hold multiple positions at once. Voters generally reject the idea of one person occupying two seats,” he explained.
But the turning point, Chin said, came on nomination day. Photographs of Sabah DAP candidates flanked by senior Peninsular DAP leaders circulated widely and were perceived as evidence that the state chapter lacked autonomy.
“That visual alone was damaging. It reinforced the narrative that DAP in Sabah is directed from across the South China Sea, rather than run by local leaders,” he said.
Another sore point was the party’s muted response to the corruption allegations involving businessman Albert Tei. Chin noted that many urban Chinese voters felt DAP failed to take a principled stance.
“Sabahans expected a firm rejection of any association with corruption. Instead, DAP’s silence was seen as evasive, and Chinese voters reacted strongly to that,” he said.
The shift was most visible in high-density Chinese constituencies—traditionally solid ground for DAP—where voters gravitated instead towards Warisan and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).
“When the Chinese vote swung away from DAP, they asked who was realistically capable of forming the government. The results show they leaned towards Warisan, which they saw as having a clearer path,” he added.
Tei was previously detained to assist investigations into claims that he paid substantial sums to a former political aide in a bid to reclaim money he had channelled to several Sabah politicians.
Chin said the combination of DAP’s missteps, unresolved grievances, and the broader frustration with federal leadership culminated in one outcome: a decisive rejection of PH in Sabah’s Chinese-majority areas. – December 1, 2025
by Alfian Z.M. Tahir
GROWING discontent among Chinese voters over Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s decision to pursue an appeal involving Sabah’s 40 per cent revenue entitlement has compounded Pakatan Harapan’s setback in the recent state election, said political analyst Professor James Chin.
Although Anwar insisted the federal government was merely challenging the wording of the judgment and not the state’s constitutional rights, many voters—particularly in Sabah’s urban Chinese community—felt misled and interpreted the move as a retreat from long-promised autonomy.
Chin, a professor of Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania, said this sense of distrust merged with anger directed at the Democratic Action Party (DAP), culminated in a major electoral backlash.
He noted that PH’s component party suffered severe losses partly because urban Chinese voters believed DAP had drifted away from local priorities.
According to him, frustration had been simmering for some time among voters who felt that DAP leaders in Peninsular Malaysia were exerting excessive influence over the party’s Sabah chapter.
“Many Chinese voters were already unhappy with how DAP performed while in government in Sabah. They felt the party could not clearly articulate what it had delivered for urban communities,” he said.
Chin added that resentment intensified when two sitting Members of Parliament were fielded as state candidates, a move voters viewed as a political overreach.
“To many, it looked like politicians wanting to hold multiple positions at once. Voters generally reject the idea of one person occupying two seats,” he explained.
But the turning point, Chin said, came on nomination day. Photographs of Sabah DAP candidates flanked by senior Peninsular DAP leaders circulated widely and were perceived as evidence that the state chapter lacked autonomy.
“That visual alone was damaging. It reinforced the narrative that DAP in Sabah is directed from across the South China Sea, rather than run by local leaders,” he said.
Another sore point was the party’s muted response to the corruption allegations involving businessman Albert Tei. Chin noted that many urban Chinese voters felt DAP failed to take a principled stance.
“Sabahans expected a firm rejection of any association with corruption. Instead, DAP’s silence was seen as evasive, and Chinese voters reacted strongly to that,” he said.
The shift was most visible in high-density Chinese constituencies—traditionally solid ground for DAP—where voters gravitated instead towards Warisan and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS).
“When the Chinese vote swung away from DAP, they asked who was realistically capable of forming the government. The results show they leaned towards Warisan, which they saw as having a clearer path,” he added.
Tei was previously detained to assist investigations into claims that he paid substantial sums to a former political aide in a bid to reclaim money he had channelled to several Sabah politicians.
Chin said the combination of DAP’s missteps, unresolved grievances, and the broader frustration with federal leadership culminated in one outcome: a decisive rejection of PH in Sabah’s Chinese-majority areas. – December 1, 2025
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