Malaysia’s Mahathir claims election win as count swings against government

Lai Seng Sin | Reuters

Mahathir Mohamad, former Malaysian prime minister and opposition candidate for Pakatan Harapan (Alliance of Hope) reacts during a news conference after general election, in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, May 9, 2018.

Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohamad said the opposition alliance he leads had won enough parliament seats in Wednesday’s general election to form the next government, but the count was continuing and official results so far did not back his claim.

The Election Commission sought to tamp down speculation about the outcome, but thousands of supporters of the Southeast Asian country’s 92-year-old former leader did not wait to celebrate, cheering and honking horns in central Kuala Lumpur.

Several key roads in the heart of the capital were blocked off by police amid growing evidence that Prime Minister Najib Razak’s coalition was on the back foot and could lose power for the first time since Malaysia’s independence six decades ago.

His party postponed an evening news conference until Thursday morning and said Najib, who has ruled the Southeast Asian country for nearly 10 years, would address the media at 11:00 on Thursday (11 p.m. ET, Wednesday).