PAS took a first elected foothold in East Malaysia through Datuk Dr Aliakbar Gulasan’s narrow win in Karambunai, Sabah, with the seat officially listed under his Perikatan Nasional coalition ticket.
Free Malaysia Today and The Straits Times described the Nov. 29, 2025, victory as PAS’s first elected seat in the region. The Election Commission of Malaysia (SPR) recorded Perikatan Nasional (PN) as the winner of one of Sabah’s 73 assembly seats. Free Malaysia Today reported that Gulasan had been a nominated assembly member from 2020.
The Borneo Post reported that Gulasan won 7,054 votes to 6,689 for Warisan’s Ahmad Jais Otong, a margin of 365 in an 11-candidate contest. SPR reported turnout of 1,148,476 voters, or 64.35%, across the election.
The Straits Times reported that Sabah had 123 Pusat Asuhan Tunas Islam (PASTI) preschools in 2026, with 7,254 children ages 4 to 6 enrolled. It said fees were as low as RM150 a month in urban areas and about RM60 in rural areas. PAS’s historical account says the PASTI name was adopted under its youth wing in 1988.
Political analyst Kamles Kumar told The Straits Times that the centers let activists build relationships with children, parents, teachers and extended families. He described a possible organizational channel; the reporting does not establish how enrolled families voted.
Gulasan told The Straits Times that some non-Muslim pupils attend PASTI for general lessons while sitting out Islamic religious instruction. Political analyst Lee Kuok Tiung told The New Straits Times that Aliakbar’s personal appeal helped him, saying, “Even non-Muslims can accept him.”
An ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute analysis of the Sabah election said candidate performance, organizational strength and vote-splitting shaped the outcome more than manifestos. The single-seat result shows PAS gained representation through a local candidate on a coalition ticket, but does not establish a broader change in support for its political platform.
The Sabah Government Gazette records that Ahmad Jais Otong filed an election petition. The Star and Malay Mail reported that the Election Court struck out the petition on March 27, 2026.
