It's D-day for MCA

comment Will there be a voting tsunami or an upset in the MCA elections today?

After months of campaigning, rhetorical presentations and engaging in polemics, the clock is finally ticking away for the hopeful MCA candidates in the last 100-meter sprint to the finishing line.

It is expected that some 90 percent of more than 2,400 eligible MCA central delegates elected from 191 divisions will exercise their rights to vote today.

Uppermost in the minds of many, will be the winners and losers in fiercely fought races for some 31 vacant posts available within the party's top hierarchy. Results will be known late this evening.

The defining moment, the final countdown of votes on the hotly contested party presidency between Ong Tee Keat, 52, and former health minister Chua Jui Meng, 64, will be anxiously watched.

The ‘open counting’ of votes will take place in Dewan San Choon to reflect transparency, a call made by challenger Jui Meng, who is making a political comeback after four years out in the cold after being dropped from his post as health minister.

Speculation on who will win is reaching fever pitch, with many staunch supporters standing by their chosen men.

"Winning is the magic word on some lips," said a delegate. However, the cynic was also quick in adding that even Hitler was elected in a free democratic election. Not that he was comparing the candidates to the infamous German dictator, but rather questioning the "wisdom" of the delegates.

With some 20 percent of delegates being confirmed "fence-sitters" as one enthusiastic delegate called them, candidates are leaving no stone unturned in winning over voters.

Candidates also noted that some 25 to 30 percent of the delegates comprised voters from the youth and women's wings. So, many took the effort to campaign at the youth and wanita assemblies even though both events were held in different locations.

The campaigning messages have also developed a "taste" for electioneering partnerships and fictional or factual alignments with the belief that they can pull in votes. On this, the famed ‘cai dan’ (preferred list of candidates) could surface discreetly, just as it did during the youth elections on Friday.

Hence, old claims are deliberately remaking their rounds, for example, claims of ‘combo’ partnerships like Ong (Tee Keat) - Ong (Ka Chuan) or Chua (Jui Meng) - Chua (Soi Lek) or even Ong (Tee Keat) - Lim (Siang Chai).

It’s not surprising that some candidates' supporters are propagating claims that their political masters have the competitive edge, putting on an air of confidence and a veneer of optimism.

And indeed, like George Bernard Shaw said, "An election is a moral horror, as bad as a battle, except for the blood, a mud bath for every soul (candidate) concerned in it".

Some party observers even lamented that the candidates and their campaigners in these elections have learnt nothing from the old ones.

Former president Ling Liong Sik reminded candidates in the 1986 party elections, "If there is a challenge, we (candidates) should not resort to underhand tactics, personal attacks and telling lies about other people. People discolour the system when they resort to personal attacks".

Candidates have been talking themselves red, white and blue in the face. No stone has been left unturned in campaigning via mass media and the latest modes of communications, from electronic gadgets, the printed word and through blogs.

The next most watched battle is the four-cornered fight for the deputy presidency, involving heavyweights (past and present), namely Ka Chuan, Soi Lek, Siang Chai and Lee Hack Teik.

Some political pundits say the candidates to watch are Ka Chuan and Soi Lek, while some speculate that Siang Chai might cause an upset.

Party observers also noted the candidates have a fair share of their own strengths and weaknesses. This contest is also closely watched due to the various controversies either allegedly or factually linked to the candidates. Murky pasts have been raked up and innuendos whispered.

Even the most optimistic of candidates and the most hardened of campaigners are full of worry and anxiety. Understandably, the stakes are high, especially for those holding ministerial posts, particularly those contesting the four vacant vice-presidency posts.

Out of the eight hopeful candidates, four are holding federal level ministerial posts, namely Chor Chee Heung, Liow Tiong Lai, Ng Yen Yen and Kong Cho Ha while Fong Chan Onn, Yap Pian Hon, Tan Kok Hong and Lim Teck Chong are the underdogs.

With 63 candidates vying for 25 central committee posts, delegates can be assured of a tight race.

As Orson Welles aptly reasoned, "If an election win is solely dependant on popularity, then Donald Duck and the Muppets would take seats in the American Senate".

After all, candidates should also remember that if they lose, life goes on. Nothing changes except maybe for the women's wing. As Imelda Marcos famously said, "Win or lose, we (women) go shopping after the election."