It was recently reported that only 147,000 of the party’s 1.1 million members, or 13.17%, had voted physically or online, leading to speculation by analysts of PKR’s membership and claims of unhappiness with the party leadership.

But Fahmi, who is gunning for the vice-presidency, said the polls this time around saw an increase in 7,000 voters. Five years ago, only 140,000 members voted, he said.

“This is positive. The party will look into what else can be done to get more members to participate in the polls,” the Lembah Pantai MP told reporters when hosting an Aidilfitri open house today.

He also attributed the low turnout to the fact that there were no contests in 65 of the 222 divisions.

“When there is no contest, there is no need for candidates to push for voters to come out in droves.”

He said this in response to Otai Reformist, a pro-Anwar Ibrahim group, which claimed that the low voter turnout may be due to PKR members’ disappointment over Pakatan Harapan’s performance while it held power in Putrajaya for 22 months.

Fahmi added that it was difficult to pinpoint the actual reason for the low turnout as no study had been conducted.

He also dismissed Universiti Utara Malaysia analyst Azizuddin Mohd Sani’s assertion that the low turnout had raised questions about PKR’s membership and cast doubt on the “legitimacy” of the winners.

Fahmi went on to compare the situation with that of the recent Johor state elections, which only saw 54.92% of voters coming out to cast their ballots.

“If we were to go by this analyst’s logic, then we need to question the legitimacy of those who won in the Johor polls.

“But this is the reality when it comes to democracy. In the end, the choice is made by those who came out to vote.”