Johor Polls: DAP names Kartiyaini Jeyapalan as candidate for Chinese-majority Skudai seat

JOHOR BAHRU: As the battle for the Johor state assembly intensifies, political coalitions are rapidly finalising their candidate rosters. In a significant move to bolster minority representation, the Democratic Action Party (DAP) has confirmed it will field two Indian-descent candidates across the 17 state constituencies it is contesting under the Pakatan Harapan banner.

Political newcomer Dr Ruban Arumugam was named for the Paloh state seat. DAP has officially named Kartiyaini Jeyapalan as its candidate for the Skudai constituency.

Kartiyaini previously served as the secretary to former Bekok assemblyman and Johor State Executive Councillor (Exco) S. Ramakrishnan during his tenure from 2018 to 2022. Currently, she serves as a secretary to the Member of Parliament for Iskandar Puteri and Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong. Liew Chin Tong is also the state assemblyman for Perling, which he won in the 2022 Johor elections, but he was not named as a candidate again for Perling.

Defending the Skudai stronghold

The Skudai constituency, which falls under the Iskandar Puteri federal parliamentary seat, has long been a key stronghold for DAP. In the 2022 Johor state election, Pakatan Harapan’s Marina Ibrahim captured the seat with a resounding victory, securing 26,359 votes. She defeated Barisan Nasional’s (BN) Lim Soon Hai, who obtained 12,416 votes, giving DAP a commanding majority of 13,943 votes.

With Marina Ibrahim sitting out this election cycle, DAP is trusting Kartiyaini to retain the seat against an anticipated challenge from Barisan Nasional’s component party, the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA).

Demographically, Skudai is a heavily Chinese-majority seat, with Chinese voters making up 60.70% of the electorate. Malay voters comprise 21.9%, followed by Indian voters at 13.8%, while other communities make up the remaining 2.1%. Given her strong administrative roots and deep ties within the coalition, Kartiyaini’s candidacy is seen as a strategic choice to consolidate support from the Indian and Chinese communities in the urban constituency.