Registered 1,280,855 10 May 1946 (1946-05-10) 1953 51 No seats | Turnout 1,027,211 (82.8%) No seat No seat Start date July 27, 1955 | |
 | ||
23 August 1951 (1951-08-23) 10 May 1946 (1946-05-10) Winner Tunku Abdul Ra | ||
A general election was held on Wednesday, 27 July 1955, the only general election before Malaya's independence in 1957. It was held to elect members of the Federal Legislative Council, which prior to this was fully appointed by the British High Commissioner in Malaya. Voting took place in all 52 federal constituencies of Malaya, each electing one Federal Councillor to the Federal Legislative Council. State elections also took place in all 136 state constituencies in 9 states of Malaya and 2 settlements from 10 October 1954 to 12 November 1955, each electing one Councillor to the State Council or Settlement Council.
Contents
The election was the first in which the Malayan Indian Congress (MIC) contested. MIC joined the Alliance Party in 1954.
The Pan-Malayan Islamic Party (PMIP, later known as PAS) was formed primarily to contest in the 1955 election. Before that, PMIP was known as the "Pan-Malayan Islamic Association", as a part of UMNO. PMIP won support by proclaiming its aim of making Islam the base of the Malay society in the north of Malay Peninsula, which was facing the lowest economic growth in Malaya.
The election resulted in a decisive win for the Alliance, which consisted of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) and MIC, and a resounding defeat for Parti Negara, led by former UMNO president Onn Jaafar. Onn himself failed to win a seat, while the Alliance proceeded to form the new government, with its leader Tunku Abdul Rahman becoming Chief Minister.
Thirty Alliance candidates had majorities of over 10,000 votes. Nine of them had majorities of over 20,000. Forty-three of their opponents lost their deposits.
Federal Legislative Council
Federal Legislative Council
The Alliance Party won around 80% of the total vote and 51 out of 52 seats contested. PMIP won their only seat in Krian, Perak. Its sole winning candidate, Haji Ahmad Tuan Hussein, an Islamic scholar, was subsequently nicknamed "Mr. Opposition". Voter turnout was 82.8%.