On 12 September 2020, Hajiji Noor established an informal alliance named Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) to compete against Shafie Apdal's ruling Warisan Plus coalition consisting of Sabah Heritage Party (WARISAN), the Democratic Action Party (DAP), Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), and the United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation (UPKO) during the 2020 Sabah state election.

[23] The proposal received the support of various party leaders, including Jeffrey Kitingan (STAR), Masidi Manjun (Sabah BERSATU), Yong Teck Lee (SAPP), Bung Mokhtar Radin (UMNO).

[24][25][26] The alliance was officially registered and legalised by the Registrar of Societies on 11 March 2022,[2] with Sabah BERSATU, PBS, STAR, and SAPP as its members.

[28] On 25 September 2022, GRS chairman Hajiji Noor announced that the coalition would support Barisan Nasional candidates in the upcoming 2022 Malaysian general election, contrary to Perikatan Nasional, of which both Sabah BERSATU and STAR was a member, which had declared Barisan as its main enemy.

[33][34] Political analysts regarded Hajiji Noor's decision to leave Sabah BERSATU as a shrewd,[4] with Romzi Ationg commenting that the transformation of the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah coalition into a purely Sabah-based entity had been long awaited by the local population.