Afnan became the first Malay representative to win the Alor Setar parliamentary seat in the recent general election, with a majority of 9,931 votes.

Azmi Hassan of Akademi Nusantara said Afnan’s victory demonstrated greater acceptance by non-Malay voters, and that PN might use this to its advantage and enhance the community’s support.

“He is the first non-Chinese MP for Alor Setar. The constituency, which consists of almost 30% Chinese and 60% Malay, supported Afnan at that time.

“To some extent, non-Malay voters contributed to (Afnan’s) majority in votes, even though there were two Chinese candidates from Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional. They couldn’t even attract 100% of the support needed,” he told FMT.

Azmi also said Afnan’s appointment aimed to resolve PN’s “main dilemma” with the ethnic barrier rather than woo young voters.

“PN has no issue attracting young Malay voters. They can do it easily regardless of who the youth chief is. Afnan may be able to woo young voters from other ethnic groups.

“This is crucial to paint the picture that the party is not only for the Malays, but the Chinese, Indians and other races as well,” he added.

However, Oh Ei Sun from the Singapore Institute of International Affairs questioned Afnan’s abilities, especially in wooing young voters.

He said the Alor Setar MP was not as popular as other leaders such as Kedah menteri besar Sanusi Nor and Pasir Mas MP Ahmad Fadhli Shaari.

For the past few years, PAS has been featuring professionals as leaders, such as Terengganu menteri besar Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, to increase its support from non-Malay voters.

Samsuri’s name was raised as a future prime ministerial candidate for PN during the Kemaman by-election last month, where he helped the coalition retain the seat with a landslide victory.