November 18th, 2022, Fiona Robinson
When asked specifically about the economy, the greatest proportion of voters expect it to worsen over the next 12 months
As Malaysian Citizens take to the polls tomorrow, latest polling from YouGov indicates that the elected may have their work cut out for them when it comes to instilling voter confidence. A majority three in four said they are “worried” about the nation’s future (75%), compared to just one in six who are “confident” (17%).
Looking across age groups, those aged 35-49 were most likely to have a positive outlook, although this figure is still fewer than one in five (19%). Older voters above the age of 50 were most likely to be concerned for the future (78%).
Voters in rural electorates were also more likely to be optimistic, with one in five expressing confidence (20%). Conversely, those in urban areas appeared to be more pessimistic, with close to eight in ten conveying worry (79%).
When asked specifically about the economy, the greatest proportion of voters expected it to worsen over the next 12 months (36%). This however was comparable to those who expect it to remain about the same (34%), while fewer anticipate an improvement (30%).
Generational divides were slightly more apparent here, with those aged 35-49 (33%) the most assured, and those above the age of 50 the least (24%). The latter were also most likely to bear a negative outlook, with over two in five expecting the economy to worsen (42%). Young voters aged 18-24 were in almost equal parts optimistic (31%) and pessimistic (32%).
As with voter confidence in the nation’s future, citizens in rural areas were more likely to express optimism, with three in eight expecting the economy to get better (36%). Just three in ten anticipated it worsening (29%).
Methodology:
YouGov interviewed 2,687 Malaysian Citizens across Malaysia between 8th and 14th November 2022. The effective margin of error on this survey is ± 2.4. YouGov conducts its polling using active sampling techniques from our online panel. When using Active Sampling, restrictions are put in place to ensure that only the people contacted are allowed to participate. We target specific demographics to ensure that the final sample is representative of the population by age, gender, ethnicity, education levels and electorate. This approach is used for YouGov polling globally.