Nurul Izzah Anwar, 44, a long-time figure in her father’s reform movement, has received a flurry of endorsements from delegates of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) this week, with many saying Anwar’s eldest child is the ideal candidate to be the party’s next deputy president.
But some critics said Nurul Izzah, who lost in the 2022 general election, had limited governance experience.
The push has triggered friction within the party, pitting her supporters against those who back Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli, an Anwar loyalist who is popular with the public.
Rafizi recently took leave from office to probe into alleged irregularities with a digital voting system and highlighted issues with it after several of his close allies lost their seats in PKR’s divisional elections.
Dynastic politics have been making a comeback in Southeast Asia in recent years.
