In addition, five of the twelve contested state legislatures were won by the opposition, compared with only one in the last election but Perak was retaken by Barisan Nasional after 11-month administration by Pakatan Rakyat coalition.

[3][4] This marked the end of Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's tenure as Prime Minister before his handover to Najib Razak several months later.

Among the issues are inflation, shortage of goods, fuel subsidies, rising crime, majority government, mismanagement, corruption, the demand for free and fair elections by a group of NGOs and political parties under the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH), racial equality especially as highlighted by HINDRAF, Internal Security Act detainees, the case surrounding the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Lingam Video Clip and the eligibility of former Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Anger among ethnic Indians regarding issues such as restrictions on jobs, education, freedom of religion and rights, and a widespread feeling of loss of dignity have played a part during the 2008 parliamentary elections in Malaysia.

[14] The government wished to retake the mandate of the opposition state of Kelantan from PAS, promising the Kelantanese people major development projects and jobs.

[17] BN coalition rolled out a major publicity campaign with a slogan promising "security, peace, prosperity" in advertisements that featured prominently in newspapers and on television.

[20] On 2 March, PAS President Abdul Hadi Awang challenged Abdullah Badawi to hold a televised debate similar to those held by US presidential candidates.

[22] On 4 March, campaigning in Malaysia's general election took on a personal tone as rivals slung accusations of nepotism, hypocrisy, boorish language and sexist tactics.

[30] Further discoveries of people who have been born in the same year possessing different identity cards (IC) and living in many different localities, were uncovered by Malaysians for Free and Fair Elections (Mafrel).

De facto Law Minister Nazri Aziz accused Human Rights Watch of bias, saying they were attempting to discredit the electoral process because "they know the National Front will win".

[38] Its introduction was a measure precluding electoral fraud by preventing duplicate votes, and would mark the first time indelible ink was to be used in a Malaysian general election.

[39] On 9 August, the National Fatwa Council declared the ink safe for use, after receiving a lab report from the Chemistry Department of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

The Commission chair also claimed intelligence concerning possible conspiracies to undermine the electoral process by applying ink to the fingers of those who had not yet voted, and said it would be best to refrain from adopting the measure for the sake of public order and security.

PKR Deputy President Syed Husin Ali alleged that the commission was "colluding with BN to allow cheating in the coming general elections," and claimed that this was proof the government felt the Opposition would perform well on polling day.

Dzulkifli Ahmad, a PAS and BERSIH leader, said that both organisations opposed the move, and that "We want to make it clear that we are entering this election under protest".

Lim Guan Eng declared that the decision would only benefit the ruling coalition, and demanded an explanation for the claim of adverse effects on public security: "It is ridiculous that the use of indelible ink can put the whole country into chaos and ruination."

Lim condemned the waste incurred over RM2 million having been spent purchasing 47,000 bottles of indelible ink from India, as of 23 February,[42] and said that the DAP would be investigating legal avenues to reverse the decision.

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, an UMNO leader, found the reversal "appropriate", citing concerns that people would be misled into applying similar-looking ink to their fingers, denying them the right to vote.

Abdul Malek added that Mafrel strongly protested the decision as contrary to its own recommendations, and compared the measure to withdrawing all currency from circulation because of the presence of counterfeit notes.

[47] After the election, Anwar Ibrahim claimed that the failure to use indelible ink had cost the PKR-DAP-PAS coalition 15 seats in Parliament, adding that "It is not unrealistic to imagine that we could actually have won a majority right then.

"[48] Two weeks after the polls, several NGOs including the Malaysian Voters Union asked the Attorney-General to officially charge four men who they alleged had been arrested for involvement in the supposed conspiracy.

[54] Barisan Nasional won 91 percent of parliamentary seats in 2004 election, but its majority is expected to be clipped this time as it suffers a backlash from ethnic Chinese and Indians.

The state of Kedah, which along with Penang, has traditionally produced a substantial bulk of past and present BN leaders (including Tunku Abdul Rahman, and Mahathir Mohamad), also overwhelmingly rose to the call of the opposition.

[62] It was a personal setback for Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who had promised millions of dollars in development aid, intending to boost the chances of the Barisan Nasional coalition.

Some interesting individual constituencies include Jeff Ooi, who rose to fame with his blog that was constantly critical of the ruling government and made his first foray into politics this election under the DAP, winning the Jelutong parliamentary seat.

[65] Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) has decided to pull out of the 14-member Barisan Nasional Government, taking away two MPs and at least two of its four assemblymen who will remain independent.

[68] The coalition consisting of mainly Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) formed the next state government in Kedah, after winning 22 out of 36 seats.

[85] On 10 March, Cheras MP Tan Kok Wai (DAP) mooted the possibility of having mayoral elections for Kuala Lumpur, but the Federal Constitution needs to be amended to allow such a change.

An analyst remarked foreign investors had lost the political stability premium enjoyed prior to the election and might abandon investment prospects in Malaysia.

[95] On 9 March United States State Department spokesman Kurtis Cooper issued a statement that the US government is ready to co-operate with the newly formed Malaysian government, adding Abdullah remains a viable partner for the US "on a wide range of issues of mutual interest", despite BN's heavy losses in the election and decreased popularity of the party.