I go over Malaysia's unique system of government including its elective monarchy, the executive and legislative, and how elections work in the country.

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Post author By Charlie November 23, 2021
The Government System of Malaysia
theweeklyrambler.com/the-government-system-of-malaysia/
Malaysia is a country located in Southeast Asia including two large sections, one
attached to the Malay Peninsula called Peninsula Malaysia bordered with Thailand and
Singapore, and the other section located on the island of Borneo called East Malaysia
bordering Brunei and Indonesia, Malaysia also includes many, many other tiny islands
scattered about it. Malaysia’s coasts on the Malay Peninsula touch the South China Sea
and Straits of Malacca, while its section on the island of Borneo touches the South China
Sea, Sulu Sea, and Celebes Sea. Other nearby countries are Cambodia, Vietnam, and
the Philippines. Malaysia’s capital city Kuala Lumpur is located on the Malay Peninsula
section close to the Straits of Malacca. Nearby Putrajaya is planned to be the
administrative and judicial capital.
It is believed that humans first settled in what is now Malaysia as far back as 40,000
years ago and the first humans in the Malay Peninsula area are thought to have been a
diverse grouping of ethnicities known as the Negritos. Indian and Chinese traders and
settlers eventually arrived in the area around the 1st Century AD who created trade posts
and coastal towns during the 2nd and 3rd Centuries. Local cultures were strongly
influenced by the Indian and Chinese settlers leading to the adoption of Hindusim and
Buddhism, and Sanskrit inscriptions dating back to at least the 4th or 5th Centuries.
A number of Malay Kingdoms came about, including the Kingdom of Langkasuka which
arose during the 2nd Century in the north of the Malay Peninsula and lasted until around
the 15th Century, there was also the Kingdom of Singapura whose final king
Parameswara fled from its fall to found the Malacca Sultanate, which attracted trade from
the region and became an important commercial centre. There was also
the Srivijayan Empire that held much of the Southern Malay Peninsula from the 7th

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Century but by the 13th Century much of the Peninsula and Malay archipelago had been
taken from the Srivijayan’s by the Majapahit Empire, from this time during the 14th
Century Islam saw widescale adoption by the peoples.
The Portuguese came and conquered Malacca in 1511 and incorporated it into the
Portuguese East Indies which would then later be taken from them by the Dutch in 1641
where it was known as Dutch Malacca. The British Empire then decided to establish a
presence in Malaya from 1786, with the Sultan of Kedah leasing Penang Island to the
British East India Company from which they would begin expanding what would
be referred to as British Malaya. The British would later obtain the town of Singapore in
1819, and also took Malacca from the Dutch in 1824 via the Dutch-Anglo Treaty.
From 1826 the British Empire had control of Penang, Malacca, Singapore, as well as the
island of Labuan which they turned into a Crown Colony called the Straits Settlements. In
1896 the British also established the Federated Malay States made up of four protected
States on the Malay Peninsula, with British residents appointed to advise the Malay
rulers, who the rulers had to defer to as dictated by treaty. There were also five further
states on the Malay Peninsula known as the Unfederated Malay States, not directly under
British rule, but did eventually allow British advisors from the 20th Century. Under British
rule the immigration of Indians and Chinese was encouraged so they could
be labourers.
The now Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo came under British control after the Sultan
of Brunei and Sultan of Sulu transferred their territorial rights between 1877 and 1878 and
it became the Crown Colony of North Borneo. Sarawak on Borneo had been ceded by the
Sultan of Brunei in 1842 to James Brooke, a British soldier and adventurer, who founded
the Raj of Sarawak there, with Brooke ruling over it as an independent Kingdom, known
as the White Rajah of Sarawak, the White Rajahs ruled over it until 1946 where it became
the British Crown Colony of Sarawak.
The 2nd World War had seen the Imperial Japanese invade and occupy Malaya, North
Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore, which lasted for three years. This period saw the rise
of ethnic tensions and the growing of nationalist sentiment, and even after the Allied
forces reconquered Malaya, the pursuit of independence continued to gain strength. The
British planned to reunite Malaya under a single Crown Colony called the Malayan Union
but were met with strong opposition of Malay peoples. The British plans would weaken
Malay rulers and give citizenship to ethnic Chinese, something many nationalist Malays
strongly opposed.
Nonetheless the union was established in 1946 which consisted of the British
possessions in the Malay Peninsula excluding Singapore. But it would quickly be
dissolved and replaced by the Federation of Malaya in 1948, which restored the
autonomy of Malay rulers of the Malay States under British protection.
Shortly following this, ethnic Chinese rebels under leadership of the Malayan Communist
Party begun an insurgency aimed to force the British out of Malaya, beginning a long
period known as the Malayan Emergency, where British Commonwealth troops launched

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an anti-insurgency campaign ending in 1960. In 1957 Malaya was given independence
within the Commonwealth of Nations and a plan was put in place to federate Malaya with
the Crown Colonies of North Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore.
Federation was planned for 1963 with the United Nations surveying the support for
federation in Sabah and Sarawak, which had been called for by parties in Borneo who
were opposed to federation with Malaya. Federation would also bring further crises which
included a deadly conflict with Indonesia, continued conflicts with Communist forces on
both the Peninsula and Borneo, which included the Sarawak Communist Insurgency and
the Second Malayan Emergency, and also ethnic and racial tensions. Continuing political
disagreement also saw Singapore expelled from the federation in 1965 which went on to
become an independent state.
Racial tensions culminated with the 13th May Race Riots in 1969. A new controversial
economic policy called the New Economic Policy was launched by then Prime Minister
Tun Abdul Razak following the riots attempting to increase the share of the economy held
by the bumiputera, Malaysia’s majority ethnic grouping. The economy greatly improved
from the 1980s under the leadership of Mahathir Mohamad and there was
also urbanisation, the economy shifted from agriculture to industry and manufacturing.
There was another big down period during the Asian Financial Crisis in the 1990s which
Malaysia eventually recovered from.
After Prime Minister Najib Razak was implicated in a major financial scandal in 2015 it
helped contribute to the ruling party losing power for the first time since independence in
the 2018 elections, seen as a good sign for democracy in the country.
The official language is Malay while English is a recognised language. The country is
made up of many ethnic groups, the largest being the Bumipetera which itself is a
grouping of ethnicities that include Malays, the Orang Asli, and indigenous groups of
Sabah and Sarawak, after the Bumipetera are the Chinese who make up a large part of
the populace, then Indians. The largest religion is Islam which is also the official state
religion, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, and Chinese folk religion are also followed by
a large number of peoples.
The country’s official currency is the Malaysian ringgit. The country’s population is over
32,941,530.
Government Type

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Malaysia Coat of Arms.
Malaysia is a federal representative democratic constitutional elective monarchy. In this
the King, also called the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, is Head of State who is interestingly
elected to the position via a Conference of Rulers made up of hereditary Malay Sultans,
with each of the nine Malay Sultans ruling over a Malay State, the other four Malaysian
states without a Sultan are instead headed by Governors. The Governors on the
Conference of Rulers have much more limited involvement than the actual Rulers.
The Prime Minister is the Head of Government. The Parliament of Malaysia is a
bicameral one, made up of the Dewan Rakyat as the lower house and the Dewan Negara
as the upper house.
As a federation the Malaysian states have state legislatures and governments (as well as
either a hereditary Sultan or appointed Governor) and states have their own rights, such
as needing a state legislatures consent for certain changes made to said states at the
federal level. If any State Law is inconsistent with a Federal Law, then the Federal Law
prevails and the State Law, to the extent of said inconsistency, shall be void.
The Federal Parliament may make laws with respect to any matter reserved to the States
under certain conditions, such as for the purpose of implementing any treaty, agreement
or convention between the Federation and another country, or any decision of an
international organisation the Federation is a member of; or for the purpose of promoting
uniformity of the laws of two or more States; or if so requested by the Legislative
Assembly of a State.

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There are some other restrictions, such as that affect Islamic law, customs of Malays or
any matter of native law or custom in the States of Sabah and Sarawak. Government of a
State concerned must also be consulted. Such laws made may also need to be adopted
by the State legislature in question to make it State law, which can also be amended or
repealed by a law made by the State legislature.
There is procedure for the Federation to acquisition land from States for Federal
purposes if there is believed to be such a national interest. This comes with a bunch of
restrictions and requirements.
Within the Federation, the States of Sabah and Sarawak have many special exceptions
and altered procedure on various matters relating to land, development, finance, local
government and so on as stated in the Constitution. Sabah and Sarawak also have a
separate High Court to the rest of the country.
The Monarchy and Executive Government
Official residence of the Monarch. © CEphoto, Uwe Aranas. Original Source.
The king, or better known as Supreme Head of the Federation, or the Yang di-
Pertuan Agong, is the Head of State. The federal monarch (as I will now call it) takes
precedence over all other persons in the Federation and cannot be held liable to any
proceedings whatsoever in any court except within the Special Court established by the
Constitution.
The Consort of the federal monarch is the next person to take precedence, known as the
Raja Permaisuri Agong.

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The federal monarch is elected to a 5-year term by the Conference of Rulers. The federal
monarch can at any time resign, or be removed from office by the Conference of Rulers.
They will also cease to hold office upon ceasing to be a Ruler.
Conference of Rulers
The Conference of Rulers or the Majlis Raja-Raja is a council that includes nine Sultans
(often referred to as just Rulers) and four Governors, one from each of the 13 Malaysian
states. As is known one of their most important roles is to elect the federal monarch and
their deputy for a 5-year term. They also agree or disagree to the extension of any
religious acts, observances, or ceremonies to the Federation as a whole. Note that the
Governors cannot be involved in the election or removal of the federal monarch or their
deputy or that relate to privileges, position, honours, and dignities of the royal highnesses,
or to religious acts, observances and ceremonies.
They also consent or withhold consent for any law and making or giving advice on any
appointment which under the Constitution requires the consent of the Conference or that
is to be made by or after consultation with the Conference.
The Conference of Rulers appoint the members of the Special Court.
The Conference of Rulers also grants pardons, reprieves and respites, or of remitting,
suspending, or commuting sentences.
Rules that affect the privileges, position, honours or dignities of the Rulers cannot be
passed without consent from the Conference of Rulers.
The Conference of Rulers must also be consulted before any change in policy affecting
administrative action under Article 153 of the Constitution.
The Conference of Rulers may also deliberate on matters of national policy, such as
immigration policy for example, or any other matter that it thinks fit. When the Conference
does deliberate on matters of national policy, then the federal monarch will be
accompanied by the Prime Minister, and the other Rulers and Governors are
accompanied by their Chief Ministers (the Heads of Government of their States). The
federal monarch acts in accordance with advice of the Cabinet, the other Rulers and
Governors act on the advice of their state’s Executive Council.
Election of the Monarch
A Ruler cannot be elected to be the federal monarch if they are a minor; if they have
notified that they do not desire to be elected; or the Conference of Rulers have decided
via a secret ballot that they are unsuitable due to infirmity of mind of body or any other
cause. At least five members must agree with a resolution on this for it to pass.
The Conference of Rulers offers the office of federal monarch to the Ruler qualified for the
election whose State is first on the election list, if not accepted they go down the list until
one of the Rulers accepts the office.

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For the first election the election list comprised the States of all Rulers in the order in
which these Royal Highnesses saw themselves in precedence among each other.
Since then, the list changes based on who is elected and eventually reconstituted and so
on, so that it cycles around in a certain way – highly complex.
Monarch Duties and Powers
The executive authority is vested in the federal monarch who exercises it, subject to the
provisions of federal law and constitution. Executive authority is also exercised by the
Cabinet (the highest executive decision-making body of the federal government) or any
Minister authorised by the Cabinet. Parliament may by law confer executive function on
other persons.
The federal monarch exercises power and functions in accordance with the advice of the
Cabinet or a Minister acting under the general authority of the Cabinet, unless otherwise
provided for by the Constitution. The federal monarch is entitled to, at their request, any
information concerning the government of the Federation which is available to the
Cabinet.
The federal monarch acts under their own discretion in the performance of appointing the
Prime Minister; withholding consent to a request to dissolve Parliament; and the
requisition of a meeting of the Conference of Rulers concerned solely with the privileges,
position, honours and dignities of their Royal Highnesses, and any action at such a
meeting; and any other case mentioned in the Constitution.
The federal monarch is the Supreme Commander of the armed forces of the Federation.
The federal monarch has the power of pardon at the federal level, acting on advice of a
Pardons Board for the Federal Territories. He/she can grant pardons, respites, reprieves,
in respect to all offences which have been tried by court-martial and all offences
committed in the Federal Territories, of which there are three, Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and
Putrajaya, which are not a part of any of the 13 States. Offences committed within States
can be pardoned, given respite or reprieve instead by the respective Ruler or Governor,
acting on advice of a Pardons Board for the respective State.
The Pardons Board for the Federal Territories includes the Attorney General, the Minister
in charge of the Federal Territories, and not more than three other members appointed by
the federal monarch for 3-year terms, those appointed cannot be a member of a State
Legislative Assembly or a member of the lower house of the Federal Parliament of
Malaysia. The Pardons Board also considers any written opinion delivered by the
Attorney General before making a decision.
If, after recommendation from an expert committee and after consultation with the
National Finance Council, the National Land Council, and Government of any State
concerned, the federal monarch so satisfied that it is in the national interest that a
development plan be put into operation in any area or areas in one or more of the States.
Proclaiming of areas as development areas gives Parliament the power to affect the

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development plan or parts of it, excluding parts with respect to where only States can
make laws for. The States of Sabah and Sarawak have special exceptions to abiding to
development plans.
The Auditor-General, who makes audits of accounts of the Federation and States, is
appointed by the Federal Monarch on advice of the Prime Minister and following
consultation with the Conference of Rulers.
The Chief Justice of the Federal Court, the President of the Court of Appeal, Chief
Judges of the High Courts, and the other judges of these courts are appointed by the
federal monarch on advice of the Prime Minister, following consultation with the
Conference of Rulers. The Prime Minister consults with numerous officials dependent on
what position is being appointed.
The federal monarch can proclaim an emergency for the federation or certain areas if
he/she is satisfied a grave emergency exists which threatens security, economic life, or
public order. These powers can give decree power to the federal monarch and suspends
certain rights and guarantees for a period of time. Parliament can later choose to revoke
anything brought in by the federal monarch’s decree power.
Cabinet of Ministers and Other Councils
The Cabinet of Ministers is the highest executive decision-making body of the federal
government, made up of Ministers including the Prime Minister who is Head of the federal
Government. The Cabinet advises the federal monarch on the exercise of his/her
functions.
The Prime Minister is appointed by the federal monarch using his/her judgement on who
they believe will command the most confidence of the lower house of the federal
Parliament, usually someone from the largest party or grouping following legislative
elections. The Prime Minister then advises the federal monarch on the appointment of the
other Ministers of the Cabinet, who can be appointed from either the lower or upper
house of the federal Parliament. Ministers can be removed and replaced by the federal
monarch on advice of the Prime Minister. Deputy Ministers are also appointed by the
federal monarch on advice of the Prime Minister, existing to assist Ministers in their
duties.
The Prime Minister and Cabinet are responsible to the federal Parliament, namely the
lower house, as if the Prime Minister/Cabinet loses the confidence of the lower house
they may lose power. If confidence has been lost the Prime Minister can request that the
be Parliament dissolved (with fresh elections organised), or the Prime Minister can resign
along with the Cabinet.
The Prime Minister themself can appoint Parliamentary Secretaries from among
members of either House of the federal parliament, existing to assist both Ministers and
Deputy Ministers. Political Secretaries can also be appointed by the Prime Minister, they
do not need to be members of the federal parliament, their duties and functions are
determined by the Cabinet.

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Members of Cabinet have the right to take part within proceedings of either House of the
federal Parliament but may only vote within the one they are a member of.
The Attorney General of the Federation is appointed by the federal monarch on advice of
the Prime Minister. Acting as legal advisor and with powers to conduct or discontinue
proceedings for an offence.
There is a National Land Council consisting of a Minister as Chairman, one
representative from each State appointed by the Ruler or Governor of said States, and
representatives appointed by the Federal Government that does not exceed 10. The
council consults with the federal government, state governments, and National Finance
Council national policy for the promotion and control of usage of land throughout the
Federation for mining, agriculture, forestry or other purpose, and any laws related to this.
The States of Sabah and Sarawak have special exceptions from abiding to decisions of
this council.
There is a National Council for Local Government consisting of a Minister as Chairman,
one representative from each State appointed by the Ruler or Governor of said States,
and representatives appointed by the Federal Government that does not exceed 10. This
council formulates, in consultation with Federal and State governments, a national policy
for the promotion, development, and control of local government throughout the
Federation and administration of any laws in relation to this. The States of Sabah and
Sarawak have special exceptions from abiding to decisions of this council.
There is a National Financial Council consisting of the Prime Minister, and such other
Ministers as designated by the Prime Minister, as well as one representative from each
State appointed by the respective Ruler or Governor. It deals with matters relating to the
making of grants, assignment of federal tax or fees, loans, borrowing powers, making of
development plans, among other things.
There is an Armed Forces Council responsible under the general authority of the federal
monarch for the command, discipline, administration of, and all other matters related to
the armed forces, excluding operational use. The council consists of the current Minister
of Defence as Chairman; one member representing the Royal Highnesses appointed by
the Conference of Rulers; the Chief of the Defence Forces who is appointed by the
federal monarch; a civilian member, performing the duties of the office of Secretary
General for Defense, acting as Secretary to the Council; two senior staff officers of the
Federation Armed Forces and a senior officer each of the Federation Navy and Air Force
all appointed by the federal monarch; and two, if any, additional members, military or
civilian, appointed by the federal monarch.
There is a Judicial and Legal Service Commission consisting of the Chairman of the
Public Service Commission who is its Chairman; the Attorney General or Solicitor
General dependent on circumstances; and one or more other members appointed by the
federal monarch, after consultation with the Chief Justice of the Federal Court, who meet
the correct judicial experience.

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There is a Public Services Commission consisting of a Chairman, Deputy Chairman, and
no less than 4 and no more than 30 other members, all appointed by the federal monarch
in his/her own discretion but after hearing the advice of the Prime Minister, and after
consultation with the Conference of Rulers. An Education Service Commission (with
differing number of members) is appointed basically in the same way.
There is a Police Force Commission consisting of the Minister responsible for police as
Chairman; the officer of police in general command of the police force; Secretary General
to the ministry under the Minister responsible for police; a member of the Public Services
Commission appointed by the federal monarch; and not less than two and no more than
six other members appointed by the federal monarch.
Absence or Vacancy of Monarch
There is a deputy to the federal monarch, the Deputy Supreme Head of the Federation,
called the Timbalan Yang di-Pertuan Agong. The deputy will exercise the functions and
have the privileges of the office of the federal monarch during any period in which the
office of the federal monarch is vacant or the elected federal monarch is unable to
exercise the functions of their office due to illness, absence from the Federation, or any
other cause, for longer than 15-days, although it can be sooner than that if the deputy
believes it is necessary or expedient to exercise the functions.
The deputy is also elected by the Conference of Rulers for a 5-year term, or if elected
later they serve the remainder of the term of the elected monarch. The deputy can resign
at any time and ceases to hold on office in the event of ceasing to be a Ruler.
Parliament may by a law provide for the exercise by a Ruler of the functions of the federal
monarch in cases where the function would fall under the deputy, but that the deputy is
unable to due to their own vacancy or absence for any reason. Such a law requires
consent from the Conference of Rulers to have affect.
Federal Monarch Limitations
The federal monarch cannot exercise their functions as Ruler of their State apart from
those of the Head of the Religion of Islam. They can also not hold any appointment
carrying any remuneration (this also applies to the Consort); they cannot actively engage
in any commercial enterprise (this also applies to the Consort); they shall not receive any
emoluments of any kind whatever payable or accruing to him as the Ruler of their State
under the provisions of the Constitution of that State or of any State law; the federal
monarch cannot be absent from the Federation for longer than 15-days, unless they have
consent from the Conference of Rulers or they are on a State visit to another country.
The above limitations will also apply to the deputy or a person authorized by law if they
take over the federal monarch position for longer than 15-days.
The federal monarch may still amend the Constitution of their State.
Removal of Elected Monarch

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If the federal monarch is charged with an offense under any law within the
Special Court they shall cease to exercise the powers of the office of the federal monarch.
The Special Court can also try Rulers of States. The Special Court consists of the Chief
Justice of the Federal Court who is its Chairman; the Chief Judges of the High Courts;
and two others persons who hold or have held office as judge on the Federal Court or a
High Court appointed by the Conference of Rulers.
The federal monarch can also just simply be removed from their office by vote of the
Conference of Rulers, needing at least five members to agree to it.
The Legislative Government
Meeting place of Parliament. Photo by Earth at English Wikipedia. CC BY 2.5. Source.
The legislative authority is made up of a federal lower house called the Dewan Rakyat
(the House of Representatives) which is seen as the primary house as it determines the
Prime Minister, and the federal upper house called the Dewan Negara (the Senate).
The Parliament subject to provisions of the Constitution and the federal law shall regulate
its own procedure. The main purposes of Parliament are to scrutinize legislative bills that
are introduced, debate them, possibly amend them, and either pass or reject them. Bills
fully passed go on to the federal monarch for assent. The lower house, House of
Representatives, plays an important role in keeping check of the Prime Minister and
Government activities.

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Most legislative bills can be introduced in either House. When one House passes the bill,
it goes on to the other House and after both Houses agree to any possible amendments
made by the other and ultimately assuming the bill is passed the bill then goes forth to the
federal monarch for assent, who must assent to it within 30-days of receiving it or the bill
will automatically be considered assented to.
Money bills such as those that involve tax changes, borrowing of money, changes of
financial obligations of the Federation, that affect the Consolidated Fund, compounding or
remission of debt, assignment of tax or fees or a grant to a State, may only be introduced
or moved by a Minister and must not be introduced to the Senate. When one of these
money bills does reach the Senate they have limited ability to affect changes or
amendments and can be overruled by decision of the House of Representatives and
ultimately bypassed where the money bill goes to the federal monarch for assent.
The federal Parliament has the ability to admit other states to the Federation and to alter
the boundaries of any state via the passing of a law. But to alter the boundaries of a State
there must first be consent expressed via that state’s legislature passing a law to that
effect, the Conference of Rulers, made up of the Sultans and Governors, must also give
their consent.
The Federal Monarch from time-to-time summons Parliament and cannot allow 6-months
to elapse between the last sitting in one session and the date appointed for its first
meeting in the next session. The federal monarch has the power to prorogue and dissolve
Parliament as guided by the conventions, federal laws, and Constitution. Bills pending in
Parliament or pending for assent at the time of prorogation shall not lapse due to it.
The federal monarch can address either House or both jointly.
The House of Representatives
The lower primary house of the federal parliament is constitutionally-fixed to having 222
elected members. The makeup of this House determines the Prime Minister and
ultimately the makeup of the government. This house keeps check on
Government activities and may withdraw confidence from the Prime Minister and
Government, either leading to the dissolution of the House and early election or the
resignation of the Government and the attempt to form a new one.
There is a Speaker and two Deputy Speakers of the House of Representatives elected by
members of the house, the Speaker can either be elected from among members of the
House or those who are not members but meet the qualification of the members. The two
Deputy Speakers must be existing members of the House.
It is the task of the Speaker to represent the House in an impartial manner, to enforce the
house’s rules and procedures, and keep orderly conduct and operation of agenda. They
can only vote to break any ties that may come about.
The Speaker and Deputy Speakers are disqualified from office if after three months of
being elected they are still or they become a member of any board of directors or board of
management, or an officer or employee, or engages in the affairs or business of

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any organisation or body, corporate or otherwise, or of any commercial, industrial, or
other undertaking, whether or not it gives profit, benefit or reward. This does not apply to
bodies or organisations that carry out welfare or voluntary work or objective beneficial to
the community or any part thereof, or any other work or objective of a charitable or social
nature, and that they do not receive any profit, benefit, or reward from it.
The Senate
The upper house of the federal parliament currently consists of 70 members who are both
appointed and elected by legislative bodies.
There is a President and Deputy President of the Senate elected from among their own
members. Similar to the Speaker, the President of the Senate represents the Senate in
an impartial manner, enforces rules and procedure, maintains orderly conduct and
operation of agenda. They can only vote to break any ties that may come about.
The President and Deputy President of the Senate faces the same disqualifications as
the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
The Electoral System
Map by Uwe Dedering from Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 3.0. Source.
The House of Representatives consists of 222 elected members, divided up between the
States and Federal Territories by the Constitution: 20 from Johore, 15 from Kedah, 14
from Kelantan, 6 from Malacca, 8 from Negeri Sembilan, 14 from Pahang, 13 from
Penang, 24 from Perak, 3 from Perlis, 25 from Sabah, 31 from Sarawak, 22 from
Selangor, 8 from Terengganu, 11 from Kuala Lumpur, 1 from Labuan, and 1 from
Putrajaya. These are all divided up into single-seat electoral constituencies within the
States and federal territories.
Elections for the above house take place every 5-years unless sooner dissolved, all
members are elected from single-seat constituencies via simple majority vote (first-past-
the-post system). There are no term limits.
For the Senate its 70 members hold three-year terms which are term limited to two further
terms. It is made up of 26 members elected by state Legislative Assemblies, two from
each State; 4 members appointed by the federal monarch to represent the Federal

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Territories, two for Kuala Lumpur and one for the other two; and 40 further members
appointed by the federal monarch.
Those members appointed by the federal monarch are those who he/she believes have
rendered distinguished public service or have achieved distinction in the professions,
commerce, industry, agriculture, cultural activities or social service or are representative
of racial minorities or are capable of representing the interests of aborigines.
The federal Parliament has the power to increase the members elected to the Senate by
each State to three each provided that these members are elected by the direct vote of
the electors of those States. They also have the power to decrease the number of
appointed members or even abolish appointed members.
To be a member of the Senate one must be at least 30-years-old or to be a member of
the House of Representatives one must be at least 18-years-old. Members can be
disqualified for being of unsound mind, being an undischarged bankrupt, holding an office
of profit, electoral or other crime conviction, and foreign allegiance or change of
citizenship.
There is an Election Commission appointed by the federal monarch after consultation
with the Conference of Rulers, consisting of a Chairman, Deputy Chairman and five other
members. It governs the conduct of elections to the House of Representatives and State
Legislative Assemblies and has the power to review and suggest changes to the divisions
of constituencies to keep compliant with constitutional requirements.
To vote in elections one must be at least 18-years-old and resident in their constituency or
registered as an absent voter and that constituency. People can be disqualified from
voting due to electoral violations, being of unsound mind, or if they face the death penalty
or conviction of prison of 12 or more months anywhere in the Commonwealth.
Sources
The sources for this post come from Malaysia’s Constitution of 1957 with amendments
through to 2007 though I also included the 2019 amendments as well (specifically the
change in voting age and age requirement for the House of Representatives) and so
should be as up to date as possible. I may still have missed things, certainly with this
being the longest and most complex constitution so far, otherwise it would have become
too long and complex if it is not already. I may also have misinterpreted some things and
the Constitution can be amended and so this may eventually become outdated.
Amendments to the Constitution are proposed via bills in Parliament and passage
requires a two-thirds majority in the second and third readings. There are many
parts exempt from amendment and repeal.
Up next will be the government system of the Maldives.

15. 15/15
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