Mahathir Mohamad will become the world\u2019s oldest elected leader, after a shock victory in Malaysia\u2019s election.<\/p>\n
The former PM, 92, came out of retirement and switched to the opposition to challenge his former protege Najib Razak, who has been beset by corruption allegations.<\/p>\n
His historic win has ousted the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which has been in power since independence in 1957.<\/p>\n
Mr Mahathir said his coalition would \u201crestore the rule of law\u201d.<\/p>\n
Mr Najib has not yet commented on his dramatic loss.<\/p>\n
Official results showed the opposition Pakatan Harapan \u2013 the Alliance of Hope \u2013 had secured 113 of the 222 being contested, including some which have never before been taken by the opposition. BN took 79 seats.<\/p>\n
Announcing his victory in Kuala Lumpur, Mr Mahathir said his coalition had secured \u201cnot just a few votes, not just a few seats, but a very substantial majority\u201d.<\/p>\n
He said he hoped a swearing-in ceremony would be held on Thursday and announced \u2013 to cheers among his supporters \u2013 that there would be a two-day holiday.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there will be no holidays for the winners.\u201d<\/p>\n
Opposition supporters \u2013 most of whom have only ever lived under one government \u2013 poured on to the streets overnight in celebration.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel that with this change we probably can see something better in the future,\u201d Suva Selvan, a 48-year-old doctor, told AFP.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur hope for the future is a better government, fair, free and united.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mahathir was prime minister, at the head of the BN coalition, for 22 years, from 1981 until he stepped down in 2003.<\/p>\n
Under his leadership, Malaysia became one of the Asian tigers \u2013 the group of countries which saw their economies expand rapidly in the 1990s. But he was an authoritarian figure who used controversial security laws to lock up his political opponents.<\/p>\n
Most infamously his deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, was sacked and accused of corruption and sodomy \u2013 and later jailed on the latter charge \u2013 when he called for economic and political reforms in 1998.<\/p>\n
Mr Mahathir was also a mentor to Najib Razak who went on to become prime minister in 2008, but has faced almost constant allegations of corruption.<\/p>\n
He has been accused of pocketing some $700m from the Malaysian Development Berhad, a state investment fund he set up.<\/p>\n
He has vehemently denied all allegations and been cleared by Malaysian authorities but the fund is still being investigated by several countries. Mr Najib has been accused of stifling Malaysian investigations by removing key officials from their post.<\/p>\n
The economy has grown under his leadership, but a rising cost of living and the introduction of a new goods and services tax have dented the BN\u2019s gains at previous elections.<\/p>\n
In 2016, Mr Mahathir dramatically announced he was leaving the Barisan Nasional to join the Pakatan Harapan. He said he was \u201cembarrassed\u201d to be associated \u201cwith a party that is seen as supporting corruption\u201d.<\/p>\n
Then in January, he said he would run for the leadership again.<\/p>\n
Countering fears about his age, he said he intended to govern for two years before stepping down. He promised he would arrange a pardon for Anwar Ibrahim, clearing the way for him to be re-elected and take the top job.<\/p>\n
Ahead of the election, there were allegations that voting would not be free and fair.<\/p>\n
The government recently passed a law redrawing election boundaries, leading to accusations that it had gerrymandered constituencies to ensure they were filled by Malay Muslims, traditionally BN supporters.<\/p>\n
A controversial fake news law was also recently introduced, which critics say could be used by the authorities to muffle dissent. Mr Mahathir is himself being investigated under that law after alleging that his plane had been sabotaged.<\/p>\n
And in the days before the poll, election reform group Bersih 2.0 accused the Election Commission (EC) of multiple \u201celectoral crimes\u201d, including irregularities in postal voting and failing to remove dead people from the electoral roll.<\/p>\n
The government had insisted the election would be free and fair, with Mr Najib saying that the EC acted \u201cfor the good of all\u201d.<\/p>\n
Courtesy: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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