Malaysia's Islamists win key by-election

Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia: Malaysia's opposition Islamist party won a fiercely contested by-election on Saturday in a vote that was cast as a referendum on incoming prime minister Najib Razak.

The Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS), part of Anwar Ibrahim's three-party opposition alliance, won the seat in the Southeast Asian country of 27 million people, by 2,631 votes, overturning a government majority of 628.

Turnout in the constituency in northeast Malaysia was almost 80 per cent.

Najib, who will take office in March after the incumbent decided to step down early under pressure, had declared this seat a "must win" ahead of polls for top party jobs in his United Malays National Organization, the main government party.

The result in Kuala Terengganu came with the National Front still reeling after big losses in the March 2008 general election and after Anwar, who was once deputy prime minister until his imprisonment on sodomy charges in the late 1990s, was returned to parliament with a huge majority in August last year.

The result will not fundamentally alter the balance of power in the Malaysian parliament where the government still has a majority of 52 seats in the 222-member house.