Editor’s note: Additional leaked slides from the same Merdeka Center survey, containing non-Malay and overall approval ratings, surfaced after this report was published. Malaysiakini subsequently reported that the broader findings placed Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim ahead overall.

Leaked findings from a Merdeka Center survey on voters’ “approval ratings” have painted a seemingly grim picture for government leaders, with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and his deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi trailing far behind in Malay support.

Topping the charts, with 62 percent of Malays surveyed expressing their satisfaction with him, is Umno exile-turned-returnee Khairy Jamaluddin, followed by Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin (49 percent) and PAS vice-president Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar (48 percent).

While Anwar received a 45 percent rating in terms of "satisfaction", PAS president Hadi Awang garnered...