The date is set: Malaysia goes to the polls on May 5th!
The dates are out! Malaysians will finally get to cast their votes on Sunday, May 5.
Election Commission (EC) chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof revealed the polling date and nomination date - which falls on April 20 - in an announcement that beamed live across several television stations after a 10am meeting in Putrajaya.
Abdul Aziz said RM400 million has been allocated to the EC to conduct the polls.
Malaysians have waited with bated breath for this day, with speculations on the elections beginning as early as 2011.
In the three general elections held between 1959 and 1969, campaigns lasted over 34 days. The shortest campaign period so far was in 2004, when it was set for only eight days.
Last Wednesday - on the fourth anniversary of his premiership - Najib Razak announced the dissolution of parliament.
Najib promised that any change of regime would take place peacefully, prompting almost unanimous praises from the rakyat and the Opposition.
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After the widely-dubbed 'political tsunami' of the 2008 elections, Barisan Nasional went all out to transform the country into a high-income nation. Najib kickstarted his brainchild - the Government Transformation Programme - with the hope of realising former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad's dream of turning Malaysia into a developed nation by the year 2020.
This will be Najib's first attempt to seek a mandate since taking over from ex-PM Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who led Barisan Nasional to their worst ever polls performance.
Following its biggest ever victory in 2008 - denying BN their two-thirds Parliament majority and wrestling control of four states - DAP, PAS and PKR formed an informal alliance in their bid to claim Putrajaya for the first time in Malaysian history.
Since then, thousands have taken to the streets to make their demands against corrupt practices and free and fair elections, a struggle that remains until today.
Will these elections pave the way for a regime change or will Najib's efforts pay off? That's left to be seen.
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