MELAKA: Bersama is targeting up to 15 per cent of the votes across the 16 seats it is contesting in the Melaka election, an improvement on the three to six per cent it secured when it “tried its luck” in Johor last July.
Bersama leader Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli said it was vital for the party’s candidates to achieve the 15 per cent target to place Bersama on an equal footing with other political parties.
“I believe we will achieve a better result… based on everyone’s campaigning, I think we will be able to increase the percentage of votes, with a target of 15 per cent.
“This is because 15 per cent will put Bersama’s strength on equal footing with these established parties. If you take each component party of Pakatan Harapan (PH) separately, their individual strength is around 15 per cent as well.
“Some parties within that coalition do not even reach 10 per cent. But because their votes are combined, we have set a benchmark of 15 per cent,” he said.
In the previous Johor election, Bersama candidates secured an average of between three and six per cent of the votes across the 15 seats contested.
Rafizi, who is also a former PKR deputy president, said achieving the 15 per cent target would demonstrate that Bersama had established a core voter base.
He said reaching the target would also give the party positive momentum to compete against PH, Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) in the upcoming 16th General Election (GE16).
“If, within a three-month campaign period here, we can double or triple the support from what we previously obtained in Johor, then we are confident Bersama can mount a fierce challenge against PH and BN-PN.
“On that basis, the 15 per cent support level is crucial for us,” he said.
Meanwhile, Rafizi said Bersama would proceed with its grand finale ceramah on the final night of campaigning at Dataran Madani, despite the local authority rejecting its application.
He said the party had obtained a police permit and consulted the Election Commission (EC) on the matter.
“We have consulted the police and the EC, and the guidance we received is that it can indeed proceed provided the permit has been granted by the police.
“That is why we are stating this upfront. We will go ahead, and I hope the local authority, the Hang Tuah Jaya Municipal Council, will refrain from causing any disruption.
“There should be no incidents or unrest, as the permit has already been secured,” he said.