Muhyiddin Yassin

This chapter looks at Muhyiddin Yassin’s populist strategy, which combined Malay ethnonationalism with anti-elite populism to marginalise Malaysia’s ethnic minorities through divisive language. Moreover, it analyses Muhyiddin’s perspective on the Malays and people from various cultures to understand his populist strategy. Since 2021, Muhyiddin’s approach to ethnonationalist populism has become increasingly evident. This shift in strategy occurred when he lost power and aligned his party, Bersatu, with PAS in preparation for the 2022 general election. Unfortunately, the use of populist discourse has also led to an increase in polarisation. The chapter concludes that Muhyiddin has successfully utilised Malay ethnonationalism to influence the preferences and aspirations of the Malay-Muslim majority, despite his relatively brief term as Prime Minister during the COVID-19 pandemic.