Four photographers capture the defining moments of the election across Malaysia.By Evelyn
Malaysia held her 13th General Election (GE13) on the 5th May 2013. The election saw 85% voter turnout – making it the highest ever recorded in history. The election fever began from the time the Parliament was dissolved on 3 April, which kick-started a relentless 15 day political campaign all over the country.
GE13 proved to be an unprecedented election. Up to the peak of the election day on the 5th May, flag wars were eminent in almost every part of the country, together with daily campaigning and speeches during the night. Massive political awareness spread throughout the country, especially in the generation of young voters. The anticipation was building up until the eve of election day and about 12.9 million Malaysians showed up to vote, with some coming out as early 7:30am in some polling stations to cast their votes.
Below are some of the photos that captured some of the defining moments before and right up to the election day around Malaysia.
At the Himpunan Harapan Rakyat on 29 April 2013, held at the Han Chiang High School, Penang. (Image by Sandra Leng)The crowd cheers on at the Himpunan Harapan Rakyat in Penang, organized by the People’s Alliance party. An estimated crowd of 70,000 people turned up that night. (Image by Sandra Leng)Signature petitions against money politics that was allegedly rampant during the campaigning period of the GE13. (Image by Sandra Leng)Supporters of Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan National braved the rain during polling day in the Lembah Pantai area of Kuala Lumpur on the day of election. (Image by Khairil Safwan)Supporters of Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan National pictured talking with each other during polling day in the Lembah Pantai area of Kuala Lumpur. (Image by Khairil Safwan)Nurul Izzah, Pakatan Rakyat, gives a victory speech following polling day in the Lembah Pantai area of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Image by Khairil Safwan)Malaysia Royal Police are standby during polling day in the Lembah Pantai area of Kuala Lumpur. (Image by Khairil Safwan)At the Petaling Jaya Hockey Stadium, Selangor after the campaign. Rajiv Rishyakaran (foreground) and Bee Yin Yeo (background), are among two of the rising young leaders in Pakatan Rakyat. (Image by Keow Wee Loong)In Selangor – Wong Chen, then the PKR candidate for the Kelana Jaya parliamentary seat – addressing the large crowd at the Kelana Jaya Stadium, the eve of the election day. (Image by Keow Wee Loong)About 50,000 people were present at the final speech by Pakatan Rakyat candidates at the Kelana Jaya Stadium, Selangor on the night before the election. (Image by Keow Wee Leong)Nurul Izzah giving a pre-election speech at Mutiara Apartment, Old Klang Road, Selangor. Her contender from Barisan Nasional, Raja Nong Chik, organised a speech the same time at the same location, which caused quite a scene that night. (Image by Keow Wee Loong)In Labuan, a PKR flag was seen flying high off the coast of the beach, placed there by a local supporter. Labuan is a Federal Territory, of which only one Parliamentary seat was up for competition between Pakatan Rakyat and Barisan Nasional. (Image by Kelvin Ah Kian)A group of volunteers from the local universities were campaigning for the Labuan PKR candidate, Tan Sri Ibrahim Menudin, a day before the general election on Sunday. It was considered a new concept in political campaigning in Sabah but it received good response from the public. (Image by Kelvin Ah Kian)In Labuan, the queue of voters started as early as 7am. This crowd was at the Labuan SK Pekan 1 polling station. (Image by Kelvin Ah Kian)First time voters showing off their inked fingers after casting their votes in Labuan. It was the first time in the general election history of Malaysia that indelible ink was used. However, there was a controversy around the fact that the ink which was supposed to last up to a week could be easily washed off with sanitizer or other cleaning agents. (Image by Kelvin Ah Kian)At the polling station in Labuan, a man wore a smile after casting his vote. (Image by Kelvin Ah Kian)
Compiled by Evelyn Teh.
Many thanks to the photographers who contributed to this feature.
