MELAKA – Ab Rauf Yusoh was sworn in as Melaka Chief Minister for a second term, a day after the Barisan Nasional-Perikatan Nasional pact secured a two-thirds majority in Malaysia’s state election. The 65-year-old Tanjung Bidara assemblyman took his oath of office before state governor Mohd Ali Rustam at Seri Negeri in Ayer Keroh on November 15.
Official Election Commission results showed that Barisan Nasional won 21 of the 28 state seats in the November 14 polls, while Pakatan Harapan took four and Perikatan Nasional three. Together, Barisan and Perikatan hold 24 seats, comfortably clearing the 19-seat threshold required for a two-thirds majority.
On the night of November 14, Barisan chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi announced that both coalitions had agreed to nominate Ab Rauf for the chief minister’s post and submitted a formal nomination letter to the Yang Di-Pertua Negeri.
Ab Rauf retained his Tanjung Bidara seat with an 8,615-vote majority, a sharp increase from his 364-vote margin in 2021. A native of Masjid Tanah and former businessman, he has led Melaka Umno and the state Barisan chapter since 2018.
His rise in state politics began in March 2020, when he was appointed Melaka State Assembly Speaker despite not being an elected assemblyman. After making his electoral debut in Tanjung Bidara in November 2021, he served as senior state executive councillor for investment, industry, entrepreneur development and cooperatives.
He was appointed Melaka’s 13th chief minister on March 31, 2023, following the resignation of Sulaiman Md Ali.