The Merbok parliamentary seat, which has over 80,000 registered voters, is currently held by Umno’s Ismail Daut who won the seat in the 13th general election (GE13) by defeating PKR’s Nor Azrina Surip with a 4,122-vote majority.

Merbok Umno Youth division chief Shaiful Hazizy Zainol Abidin said Merbok was seeing a rise in new housing areas, which had brought many newcomers to the constituency.

“This is a challenge. Some of them support us. Some don’t. As a political party, if you want to stay relevant, you should address the problem, reach out to them and engage with them,” he told FMT.

Newcomers aside, Shaiful said, there was also a high number of young and first-time voters.

Adding that young voters comprise some 40% of the Merbok electorate, Shaiful said this showed how important the group was to Umno.

“For young voters in rural areas, their concern is very much on recreation and sports facilities. But in semi-urban areas, the young voters are really concerned about the economy as well as cost of living.

“I think the government has done a lot to address this problem, but the concern still remains. We need to handle this.”

When asked if the #UndiRosak movement was a concern in Merbok, Shaiful said no.

He acknowledged that the campaign to spoil the votes for both sides of the political divide was a challenge, but said Umno leaders were going all out to explain the movement to the young voters.

“I don’t think they will be influenced by this. I believe they have made their decision, whether to vote for Barisan Nasional (BN) or Pakatan Harapan (PH).

“To this end, I believe they will look forward to a more stable government and not one with a 93-year-old nominated as interim prime minister,” he said, referring to PH prime minister candidate Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

According to Shaiful, Umno is well-prepared to face GE14 and is presently focused on strengthening morale and resolving minor issues in each voting district.

He said the Merbok Umno division was also organising several events with NGOs and engaging with those in schools and villages.

Although there were concerns that Merbok would return to the opposition in a repeat of the 12th general election in 2008, Shaiful said Umno was ready for any eventuality.

“The election machinery has already been mobilised. We are 100% ready.

“In my view, Merbok will stay with Umno and BN. Other than this parliamentary seat, we are also confident of retaining the Tanjung Dawai state seat.

“At the same time, we will wrest back Bukit Selambau from the opposition. Prior to this, there were many problems such as internal sabotage and division. But now the top MIC leadership has unanimously agreed to field one candidate,” he said, adding that the front runner appeared to be Kedah MIC chairman Jaspal Singh.

The Tanjung Dawai seat is currently held by state executive councillor Tajul Urus Mat Zain, while PKR’s R Krishnamoorthy is Bukit Selambau assemblyman.

Shaiful said the performance of the current MP had not been up to mark.

“I think he is just average. He has not put in an excellent performance. He seems to be doing okay in speaking up in the Dewan Rakyat, but in my view, he should do more.”

On whether the menteri besar crisis of 2016, which saw Mukhriz Mahathir relinquishing his position, would influence the vote of Merbok constituents, Shaiful said there had been an impact in the first six months.

“But around this year, especially, we have put in more exciting proposals and more convincing policies.

“I think the rakyat is looking forward to what we have to offer, rather than looking back and dwelling on the past.”

He warned however that Umno could not afford to overlook the influence of Mukhriz and his father Mahathir, both of whom are currently with PPBM.

“I cannot say they will not influence how voters vote. They do have an influence as most PPBM members come from within the ranks of Umno, having been frustrated and angry over several issues, as well as losing in the last party election. Those are their core members.

“We are now more focused on the rakyat. We are not really bothered by how many programmes Mahathir and Mukhriz are organising in Kedah, or how many people attend their talks.”

He also brushed off concerns over the possibility of a three-cornered fight in Merbok, saying the matter was rarely discussed in Umno’s meetings.

“We are focusing on our own strengths and weaknesses. Not on the strengths and weaknesses of others.

“We are looking at maximising our services. We couldn’t care less about PAS contesting, and we couldn’t care less about what is happening in PH.

“What we are more concerned about is how many projects which we promised in the last election have been fulfilled, and how we can better solve problems.”

Shaiful said Umno was also looking into the lack of schools and addressing the issue of job opportunities in the semi-urban areas.

Malays make up the majority community in Merbok at 65%, followed by the Indians (18%) and Chinese (17%).

Previous representatives include the likes of former information minister Zainuddin Maidin and former finance minister Daim Zainuddin.