BN and PN managed to consolidate the Malay votes in the Melaka polls but the alliance struggled to appeal to the non-Malay electorate.PETALING JAYA: The results of the Melaka polls underscores PAS’s failure to win over non-Malay voters despite its alliance with Barisan Nasional, according to an analyst.

Syaza Shukri.This trust deficit the Islamic party has among non-Malay voters, Syaza Shukri said, will make it difficult for Perikatan Nasional - of which PAS is the lynchpin - to make inroads into DAP strongholds.

“If BN, which is seen to be more inclusive compared with PN, has trouble making inroads in DAP seats, what more a PAS-led PN.

“This trust deficit among non-Malays remains high. The alliance (between PN and BN) isn’t enough (to reduce it),” Syaza, of International Islamic University Malaysia, told FMT.