MERSING: Barisan Nasional's (BN) quest to recapture the Endau State Assembly seat was unsuccessful when its candidate Mohd Youzaimi Yusof lost to Perikatan Nasional (PN) candidate Alwiyah Talib with a total of 8,433 votes.

Alwiyah, who was also the incumbent, left Youzaimi behind with a majority of 3,041 votes
while the latter polled 5,392 votes.

This result indirectly dealt a huge blow to BN as the voters in the constituency had shifted their faith in PN.

Apart from that, Alwiyah also outvoted the other candidates in the contest for the seat which consisted of Mohamad Fakrulradzi Mahmud (Pakatan Harapan; 1,154 votes), Mohd Norhiysam Ibrahim (Pejuang; 145 votes) and Independent candidate, Ismail Don (77 votes).

Alwiyah's victory for the Endau state seat answered the political riddle in the area which was previously laden with controversy and political squabbles.

Political analysts had argued that Youzami's presence to contest the seat only looked strong when representing a giant party compared to Alwiyah who was more focused on her personality in addition to the outstanding service shown.

Despite deciding to join Bersatu after winning on a BN ticket in the 14th General Election (GE14), Alwiyah was able to gain the trust of the voters based on her excellent service record.

Youzaimi, meanwhile, had stressed that the seat did not belong to Bersatu apart from describing the Endau state seat as a BN stronghold.