COMMENT | It’s not that Umno/BN won; they won big, very big. From 40 seats to 48 in the 56-seat Johor state assembly, with the remaining eight seats to Pakatan Harapan, down from 12 previously. Budding Parti Bersama Malaysia lost deposits in the 15 seats contested.

But if Umno thinks the showing is because it wants a pardon/house arrest for former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, they are sadly mistaken - evidence is that line of reasoning has no basis given Umno’s declining fortunes over this previously.

The question is why Umno/BN was so strong and Harapan so weak, and whether it will translate in some way into parliamentary polls. Bersama’s poor performance was disappointing if expected, showing a lukewarm response to multiracialism right now.

The negative factors for Harapan going forward are...