Johor State Assembly · P143 Pagoh
Bukit Kepong
N07
Johor Election 2026 results
OfficialHot seatFlippedLast updated 11 July at 10:08 pm51 years old
PNIncumbent
A medical doctor and Bersatu Johor chairman since June 2022, Sahruddin Jamal has represented Bukit Kepong since 2018 and served as Johor's 17th Menteri Besar from April 2019 to February 2020, a tenure of 321 days and the shortest in the state's history.
BN
A teacher known as "Cikgu Syari'e" and a descendant of Johor religious figure Kiyai Fadhil Abu Bakar al-Banten, Ahmad Syarie Yusof chairs BN's Bukit Kepong coordination committee and has served the N07 seat for about three years.
59 years old
PH
Managing director of Maha Meshaa Enterprise since 2008 and PKR Johor state treasurer, Subramani Chami heads the party's Pagoh branch and previously contested the Buloh Kasap seat at the 2022 state election, finishing second.
Background
- From Muar; born on 26 May 1975 in Kampung Baru Batu 28, Lenga, Muar, Johor; schooled at SMK Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah 1, Pagoh.[1][2]
- Holds a medical degree (Sarjana Perubatan) from Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia, served as a medical officer at Sultanah Fatimah Specialist Hospital, Muar for five years, and ran three private Klinik Sahruddin clinics before entering active politics.[1][2]
- Bukit Kepong state assemblyman since May 2018, winning the seat in 2018 (47.90% of the vote) and retaining it in 2022 with a 710-vote majority, making the constituency one of Bersatu's strongholds in Johor.[1][3][4][5]
- Appointed the 17th Menteri Besar of Johor on 14 April 2019, replacing Osman Sapian, and conferred the Darjah Sultan Ibrahim Johor (DMIJ) with the Datuk title; his tenure lasted only 321 days until 27 February 2020, the shortest of any Johor Menteri Besar.[1][6]
- Johor Exco member for Health, Environment and Agriculture (2018-2019), chairman of the Malaysian Pineapple Industry Board (2020-2022), chairman of Bersatu Johor since 8 June 2022, and former Perikatan Nasional Johor chairman until resigning on 30 December 2025.[1][7]
- Says he accepts open, democratic competition, including against PAS in Bukit Kepong ("If PAS wants to contest there, we accept it. Bersatu has no problem."), and as Bersatu Johor chairman keeps the party open to working with aligned parties such as Muda and Pejuang.[3]
- On 27 January 2026, 14 of Bersatu Johor's 26 division chiefs publicly urged Sahruddin to step down as state chairman, saying they had lost confidence in his leadership.[8]
- Hails from Lenga and is a descendant of the well-known Johor religious figure Kiyai Fadhil Abu Bakar al-Banten; affectionately known as "Cikgu Syari'e" (Teacher Syari'e) among constituents.[1]
- A teacher who chairs the Bukit Kepong State Assembly Special Coordination Committee (JPKD), the BN area-coordinator role for the seat.[2]
- Served the constituency for around three years and, according to the BN war room director, resolved various residents' problems including issues faced by the Chinese, Indian and Orang Asli communities, and organised the 2025 Bukit Kepong Carnival as JPKD chairman.[1][2]
- Backed by grassroots including the youth wing based on his work in the area.[3][1]
- A Pakatan Harapan (PKR) politician of Indian descent based in the Pagoh area of Johor.[1]
- Holds the post of PKR Johor state treasurer (on the MPN Johor council) and is the Pagoh branch chief, heading the party's grassroots machinery for the Pagoh parliamentary area that contains the Bukit Kepong state seat.[2][3]
- At the 2022 Johor state election he contested the Buloh Kasap (N01) seat for PKR, finishing second with 3,579 votes (22.76%) behind BN-UMNO's Zahari Sarip.[4]
- In 2025 he was among 19 PKR Johor branch chiefs who signed a joint statement urging the party to immediately suspend nine PKR MPs who had called for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into judicial appointments.[5]
- Aged 59, born in Muar, Johor; holds a Diploma in Operations and Project Management from Universiti Malaysia Pahang (2022) and a Grade 2 Steam Engine and Boiler certification (2001).[6]
- Managing director of Maha Meshaa Enterprise since 2008, with an early career in the palm-oil, textile and manufacturing sectors.[7]