“We have not lost the (support of the) people. The low turnout did not result in a significant loss of support.

“We have not started our (by-election) post-mortem. But, from my observations at the tallying centre, the low turnout cost us 2,500 votes easily. These were our supporters who did not turn up.

“Maybe because it was a by-election, some thought it would not make a difference whether they voted,” he said, joking that it could also have been because a DAP candidate was not contesting in the election.

“Some voters may have been dissatisfied or unwilling to travel back to vote.

“However, the results suggest that voting along racial lines remains prevalent,” he told reporters at an event at Northam Road here.

Chow said the Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition, led by PAS, secured 83% of the Malay vote, while PH obtained 85% of the non-Malay vote, particularly from Chinese voters.

He also rejected a claim by Gerakan that DAP’s campaign was split by factions, saying national, state and local leaders were present.

“Key leaders like Lim Guan Eng, Gobind Singh Deo, Loke (Siew Fook) were present, but not at the same time.

“I attended 10 or 11 during the 14 campaign days, sometimes in the morning, during the day or dinner events.”

Chow said PH had held Chinese and Indian electorate engagement events. He added that one Chinese community dinner filled 229 tables, while an Indian community event filled 160 tables.

“These were different target groups and there is no single formula for campaign engagement,” he said.

PN’s Abidin Ismail won the Sg Bakap by-election last Saturday with a 4,267-vote majority over PH’s Joohari Ariffin.