JOHOR BARU: Support from Chinese and Indian voters is giving Barisan Nasional fresh momentum going into the final stretch of the Johor election, says Umno secretary-general Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.
Having covered nearly two-thirds of the state's 56 constituencies, he said the reception from non-Malay voters had been the most encouraging sign of the campaign.
"What excites me most is the non-Malay voters, especially the Chinese and Indians. They welcome our candidates and our leaders at every stop," he said at a Johor entrepreneurs' assembly at Persada Johor here Wednesday (July 8).
Asyraf Wajdi said Barisan had set aside mega ceramah this time in favour of door-to-door campaigning, with volunteers covering almost every home in the first week.
"The KPI for the second week is just 'sulam' – follow-up visits, including outstation voters who have just come home. That is more important," he said.
With three days to polling on Saturday (July 11), he said the machinery would now zero in on fence-sitters and voters written off as pro-opposition.
"We want no stone left unturned. Every voter is treated as a hardcore opposition voter. Hearts are in God's hands – our job is to work, persuade and offer them what we intend to do," he said, adding that all campaign workers had been told to mind their conduct, with no abuse or slander.
Asyraf Wajdi said Johor voters had "tried other parties" before returning to Barisan in 2022, and that four years of the "Onn tak Onn" phenomenon surrounding Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi was real, backed by an exco line-up two-thirds of whom are under 45.
"They did not just show up during the campaign to scatter promises. Our campaign is simple: don't promise, show proof," he said.
He said Onn Hafiz called the snap polls "not to free anyone, not out of greed or arrogance" but to seek a fresh mandate for his 2026-2030 agenda to develop Johor, and urged voters to turn out in full force on Saturday.
Barisan is contesting all 56 seats.
