Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim received positive ratings in a new survey, with a vast majority of people polled welcoming of his unity government, according to the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research.

The premier’s approval rating stood at 68 per cent, just two months after the country’s general election resulted in a hung parliament last November, according to Merdeka Center’s survey published on Friday (Feb 10). It also said 54 per cent of voters polled were satisfied with the new government’s performance. 

The survey is the first to test Anwar’s approval ratings since he took office, and is a boost for the 75-year-old ahead of six state elections that must be held this year. While the local polls would have no direct bearing on the composition of parliament, they will be a measure of the new government’s popularity among an electorate that’s seen four prime ministers in four years. 

Anwar rose to power last year on the back of support from rival blocs, even as multiple surveys ahead of the general election showed Muhyiddin Yassin, leader of the pro-Malay Perikatan Nasional was the favourite for the role by a small margin. 

Friday’s survey results show that Malaysian voters are “keen to put the instability that had mired the country’s politics in the past, and move on to provide room for the new leadership to prove themselves,” Merdeka Center said in a statement. About 83 per cent of voters accepted the king’s appointment of Anwar as premier, and 75 per cent accepted Perikatan Nasional’s decision to remain as opposition.

Still, the results are not a guarantee of Anwar’s staying power. His newfound popularity is lower than Mahathir Mohamad’s 83 per cent and Muhyiddin Yassin’s 72 per cent approval rating during their first few months in office. Both lasted less than two years in office, with Mahathir’s popularity plunging to 37 per cent during his final month in power.

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The public is assessing how well the government can address issues surrounding tepid economic growth and rising cost of living, according to Merdeka Center. The survey noted improving optimism in many indicators, with 48 per cent voters believing that the country is now “headed in the right direction” compared to just one in five in October 2022.

Anwar is scheduled to table his first national budget on Feb 24. He had earlier indicated that most of the proposals presented by his predecessor for the 2023 spending plan would remain untouched. 

The Merdeka poll was conducted between Dec 26 and Jan 15, after Anwar won a crucial confidence vote in Parliament. The survey involved 1,209 registered voters with nearly one-quarter refraining from giving their views. BLOOMBERG