GE14 | In the build-up to the 14th general election, much attention has revolved around states such as Johor and Kedah, which have been described as frontline battlegrounds.

Curiously, the Minangkabau state of Negeri Sembilan has repeatedly fallen under the radar, eventhough the opposition coalition coming close to capturing power in previous general elections.

In the 2008 general election, Pakatan Rakyat with 16 seats was shy of just three seats from capturing the 36-seat state assembly.

It lost some ground in the 2013 general election, capturing only 14 seats but was still within a realistic reach of the 19 seats needed to take state power.

The state remains elusive as the opposition coalition, now reincarnated as Pakatan Harapan, lacks the "X factor" to capture Malay votes, which are crucial in delivering the extra few defining seats.

Take the last general election for example, where DAP and PKR swept all of the 12 Chinese majority state seats in Negeri Sembilan.

The opposition coalition only managed to pick up one other Malay majority seat and another mixed-race seat, bringing the total to 14.

PAS, which was part of then Pakatan Rakyat but never a significant force in Negeri Sembilan, was completely wiped out.

However, the "X factor" that Harapan desperately needs to win Malay support in Negeri Sembilan may now be within reach, with Umno splinter party Bersatu being part of the opposition coalition.

Bersatu has branded itself as a Malay nationalist party, similar to that of Umno, which is a critical element to convince the Malay rural heartlands that receive higher electoral weight compared to urban centres.

Therefore, it is natural to expect Bersatu to play a key role if Harapan is to be successful in its third attempt capture the state.

Disgruntled over nominations

However, the Negeri Sembilan Bersatu machinery has been off to a sluggish start, owing to disagreements between current state Bersatu chief Baharuddin Ahmad and former Bersatu state chief Kamarulzaman Kamdias.

Baharuddin replaced Kamarulzaman (photo) as state chief a month before the Pakatan Harapan convention this year.

Despite this, Baharuddin's name was absent from the candidate list, announced three days before nomination day

Baharuddin, who is the Jempol division chief, was further slighted when his predecessor Kamarulzaman, who is the division chief in neighbouring Kuala Pilah, was nominated as Bersatu's candidate for the parliamentary seat of Jempol.

Likewise, many division leaders were also not nominated as candidates, raising dissatisfaction among the Bersatu grassroots in Negeri Sembilan.

The final candidate list endorsed by the Bersatu central leadership substantially deferred from the one that was proposed by the state leadership.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Bersatu source, who is leading one of the election operations rooms, admitted that the disgruntled leaders have gone inactive and refused to assist in the 14th general election campaign.

"The previously proposed candidates are upset (as they were not nominated) and don't want to support the campaign. Therefore, we have to reorganise our election machinery," he said.

Some of Baharuddin's supporters blame Kamarulzaman for the changes but the source said the decision came from "3M" - namely Bersatu chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad, party president Muhyiddin Yassin and deputy president Mukhriz Mahathir.

"Even on the eve of nomination day, our election director had been appealing to Mukhriz to allow at least one slot (for Baharuddin's camp) but the 3M refused. I don't know why," the source said.

Another Bersatu leader who has been despatched to Jempol for the election campaign acknowledged that there are elements of sabotage linked to the disgruntled members.

"It (sabotage) is present," said the Bersatu leader, also speaking on condition of anonymity. However, he downplayed their significance, stating that these state Bersatu leaders were in the minority.

"We have to understand that this is a general election, not a party election... It does affect (our momentum) but they are at most five percent (of total members)," she said.

'Rebuilding new machinery'

With just nine days left to GE14, the source said there was no choice but to put together the new election machinery, which was taking time and therefore, the sluggish start to Harapan's campaigning in the state.

Kamarulzaman, when contacted by Malaysiakini, said he was convinced the issue can be resolved within a few days.

"Such a situation is to be expected but it will only last two to three days. After that, we will be able to consolidate our machinery.

"They (disgruntled members) will be back with the team and then we can work to win... So, it's manageable," he said.

Kamarulzaman said he had met with Bersatu grassroots in Palong, a state seat within the parliamentary constituency of Jempol to hear them out.

He gave his assurance that their election programmes would commence today.

Negeri Sembilan Bersatu was in the news in January when disgruntled members disrupted the state Pakatan Harapan convention after being upset with the seats allocated to them.

State Youth chief Mohd Shahrul Anuar Abu Samah had complained about being allocated "black seats", which may be tougher but are critical if Harapan is to stand a realistic chance of winning the state.

In Negeri Sembilan, Bersatu will be contesting in the parliamentary seats of Jempol and Kuala Pilah and the state seats of Pertang, Palong, Seri Menanti, Chembong, Bagan Pinang and Gemencheh.

Having suffered a laggard start, Bersatu now has nine days left to assist PKR and Amanah in the Malay heartland as well as mounting groundwork to capture the few critical seats in the Malay heartlands for itself, which are needed to make the difference.