Malaysia's elections are too close to call just two days before hotly anticipated polls, according to a survey released today that indicated large numbers of voters were still undecided.
The upstart opposition led by Anwar Ibrahim looked set to win at least 89 of parliament's 222 seats in Sunday's vote, compared to 85 for premier Najib Razak's ruling coalition, said leading polling organisation Merdeka Centre.
But Merdeka Centre added that its analysis of all 222 constituencies indicated another 46 seats were up for grabs, with the final two likely going to independent candidates. At least 112 seats are required to form a government.
"The numbers point to neither side having a clear advantage. Whoever controls the majority of those (undecided) seats will win the country's elections on Sunday," the centre's director Ibrahim Suffian told AFP.
Malaysians have eagerly awaited the election ever since 2008 polls in which a newly united opposition made unprecedented inroads against the once-invincible ruling bloc that has tightly controlled the country since independence.
The Merdeka Centre also said a survey found that 42 per cent of respondents believed the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (People's Pact) alliance "should be given the chance to govern the country", while 41 per cent said "only Barisan Nasional can govern".
The rest of those polled were undecided or refused to respond.
However, Ibrahim said Barisan (National Front) still "has the edge" due to structural biases built into the electoral system by Barisan over the decades, and its control of traditional media.
Pakatan won 47 per cent of the nationwide vote in 2008, but just over a third of parliament.
The charismatic Anwar was once heir-apparent to Barisan but a 1998 power struggle ended with him jailed for six years on sex charges widely criticised as trumped up by his rival, then-premier Mahathir Mohamad.
Anwar joined the long-hapless opposition after his release in 2004, dramatically reversing its fortunes by uniting its disparate camps.
Amid pressure for reform, Najib has made limited liberalisation gestures and is campaigning on a promise of stability and continued economic growth.
Anwar, meanwhile, is pledging to root out rampant corruption, create a more open democracy and raise incomes.
For the survey, Merdeka Centre polled 1,600 voters between April 28 and May 2.
