Conversations, whether at coffeeshops or government offices, have been dominated by the coming general election, in what some political leaders have dubbed as the “mother of all elections”.
There are 120,165 new voters in the state, according to the Election Commission, for a total of 1,119,009 registered electors, an increase of 12% from the 998,844 in 2013.
This now sets the tone for political parties to kick off their campaigns to win support.
Although the dissolution of Parliament, as well as the state assembly, was only announced yesterday, election fever had long been felt, with political parties gearing up early preparations for the 60 state and 25 parliamentary seats in contention.
There is speculation that polling will take place in the first week of May, as in 2013.
The Barisan Nasional almost made a clean sweep of state and federal seats in 2004 and 2008, but lost support in 2013. BN only won 48 out of the 60 state seats, and 22 of the 25 parliamentary seats, with the opposition notching three federal seats and 12 state seats.
Political pundits say there will be closer battles and more drama than ever before as the opposition continues to pose a viable challenge to the ruling coalition.
Since 2013, several opposition members have defected, either declaring themselves BN-friendly or joining the ruling coaltion directly. Some BN members have also left the coalition, notably former Umno vice-president and Semporna MP Shafie Apdal, who quit to lead Parti Warisan Sabah in 2016 after a falling out with Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Former Semporna Umno deputy chief Jaujan Sambakong, the assemblyman for Sulabayan, left to join Shafie.
BN now holds 49 state seats, comprising Umno’s 30 seats, PBS (7), Upko (4), PBRS (2), LDP (3), Gerakan (2) and MCA (1), and one BN-friendly independent assemblyman Jelani Hamdan.
The opposition has 10 seats: three held by Warisan, two by PKR, one each by DAP, Parti Cinta Sabah (PCS), Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah (PHRS), Parti Anak Negeri Sabah (PAN) and Solidariti Tanahairku (STAR).
There are questions about whether the crowded field of opposition parties would hamper ambitions of winning power: the split votes in multi-cornered contests may turn to BN’s advantage as in 2013.
Warisan has agreed on an electoral pact with Pakatan Harapan, but the four-party Gabungan Sabah has closed its doors to such an alliance, citing differences in political ideologies.
Gabungan Sabah comprises Parti Harapan Rakyat Sabah, the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), STAR and Parti Perpaduan Rakyat Sabah.
The two Kadazandusun Murut-based parties, Parti Cinta Sabah and Parti Kerjasama Anak Negeri, have their own electoral pact but, despite keeping their options open, are unlikely to reach any deal with other opposition groupings.
There are also other smaller entities like Parti Kebangsaan Sabah and Parti Ekonomi Rakyat Sabah, among others, not to mention independent candidates, poised to enter the fray.
Opposition parties contend that the general election could be unconstitutional, with the Election Commission having created 13 new seats, but which have not been put in place. Shafie wants the state assembly to repeal the creation of the new seats or risk the results of the coming polls being challenged in court.
SAPP and PCS have also filed court summonses to either have the 13 seats approved or revoked.
Analyst says Sabah’s crowded opposition field not a plus for BN