KUALA LUMPUR — Transport Minister Anthony Loke has resigned as Negeri Sembilan DAP chairman following his defeat in the Chennah state constituency during Saturday’s 16th Negeri Sembilan State Election.
Loke, who led the state chapter for 22 years, lost the Chennah seat—which he had held for three consecutive terms—to Barisan Nasional’s Siow Kong Choon by 688 votes.
Addressing a press conference following a DAP Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting today, Loke stated that his decision to step down was personal and made without external pressure.
“I feel that the time has come for me to step down as state chairman and leave it to the Negeri Sembilan leadership and committee to appoint a new chairman,” Loke said. “In the election that just ended, we managed to retain nine seats. Comparatively, we are stronger than in 2004, so I feel this is the best time for someone else to take over.”
A Negeri Sembilan DAP committee meeting will be convened shortly to elect a successor from among the current state committee members.
Remaining as Secretary-General
Despite stepping back from state-level leadership, Loke confirmed he will remain as DAP Secretary-General after receiving the unanimous support of the CEC to continue leading the party into the 16th General Election.
The state election saw a major political shift in Negeri Sembilan, where Barisan Nasional (BN) and Perikatan Nasional (PN) secured 18 and seven seats respectively to form a new coalition government. Pakatan Harapan (PH) secured 11 seats overall.
