SEREMBAN: Barisan Nasional may not proceed with its initial plan to contest all 36 seats in the Aug 1 Negri Sembilan state polls, fueling speculation that it was in talks with other parties to form an electoral alliance.
It is learnt that the coalition will only be vying for about 26 seats, with the rest going to other parties.
A source said Umno will likely contest about 15 seats.
"In the last state election, Umno won 14 of the 17 seats it contested.
"So this time, it will defend all the seats it won and vie for another one or maybe two," he said on Wednesday (July 15), adding that this was to give Pakatan Harapan a tougher fight in the polls.
The source said the situation can still change depending on talks with the other political parties in the days leading up to nomination day on July 18.
Before this, Barisan had said it would be contesting all 36 state seats.
However, on July 12, PAS president Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang said his party was in talks with Umno to form a political cooperation to face the state polls.
Hadi said this was to ensure the state is led by a Malay-Muslim government after the polls.
In response, Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Umno did not have any political agreement with PAS on the state election, but discussions between both parties were only to form a mutual understanding.
When met after he met with Barisan candidates at Wisma Negri today (July 15), Ahmad Zahid chose to remain mum on the number of seats Umno will be contesting.
"We will announce the names of our candidates tonight," he said.
However, Ahmad Zahid confirmed the MCA will contest seven seats while MIC will vie for four.
Ahmad Zahid said the candidates had also signed an "Aku Janji" pledge during the meeting.
In the August 2023 polls, Barisan and Pakatan Harapan had contested the election as a team under the unity government banner.
Together, they won 31 of the 36 state seats, with the remaining five going to Perikatan Nasional.
State Umno chief Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias, when met, said Umno will also field candidates from its Wanita and Puteri wings.
"Our candidates are among the best, and we are confident they will emerge victorious," he said.
Jalaluddin said some incumbents had asked to sit out of the state polls due to family commitments and health factors. He did not elaborate.
