The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Malaysia

This page contains a list of the greatest Malaysian Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 31 of which were born in Malaysia. This makes Malaysia the birth place of the 87th most number of Politicians behind Uzbekistan, and Nepal.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Malaysian Politicians of all time. This list of famous Malaysian Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Malaysian Politicians.

1. Mahathir Mohamad (b. 1925)

With an HPI of 75.91, Mahathir Mohamad is the most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 129 different languages on wikipedia.

Mahathir bin Mohamad (Jawi: محاضر بن محمد; IPA: [mahaðɪ(r) bɪn mohamad]; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who was the fourth and seventh Prime Minister of Malaysia from 1981 to 2003 and again from 2018 to 2020. He was the country's longest-serving prime minister, serving for a cumulative total of 24 years. Mahathir was granted the soubriquet "Father of Modernisation" ("Bapa Pemodenan") for his pivotal role in transforming the economy and infrastructure. At the age of 99, he is currently the oldest living former Malaysian prime minister. Born and raised in Alor Setar, Kedah, Mahathir excelled at school and became a physician. He became active in the UMNO before entering the parliament of Malaysia in 1964 as the Member of Parliament for Kota Setar Selatan, serving until 1969 amid losing his seat, subsequently falling out with Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman and being expelled from UMNO. In 1970, he released the book The Malay Dilemma. When Tunku resigned, Mahathir re-entered UMNO and parliament through Kubang Pasu constituency, and was promoted to Minister of Education from 1974 to 1978 and Minister of Trade and Industry from 1978 to 1981. He became deputy prime minister in 1976 and in other cabinet before being sworn in as prime minister in 1981. During Mahathir's first tenure, Malaysia underwent modernization and economic growth, and his government initiated widespread industry privatisation and a series of bold infrastructure projects. Mahathir was a dominant political figure, winning five consecutive general elections and fending off several rivals for UMNO's leadership. He centralised power through undermining judicial independence and supporting a constitutional amendment to remove legal immunity for royalty. He continued pro-bumiputera policies, and oversaw Malaysia's relatively fast recovery from the 1997 Asian financial crisis. In 1987, he detained various activists and religious figures under Operation Lalang, and in 1998 had his deputy Anwar Ibrahim arrested. As prime minister, he was an advocate of Asian values and development models, and was particularly prominent across the Muslim world. Mahathir resigned in 2003 after 22 years in office, but remained politically influential and was critical of his successors. He quit UMNO over the 1MDB corruption scandal in 2016, joining BERSATU and leading the Pakatan Harapan opposition coalition to victory in the 2018 general election. During a second tenure as prime minister, he pledged to investigate the 1MDB scandal, combat corruption, and cut spending on large infrastructure projects. He also secured the pardon and release of Anwar Ibrahim. Mahathir resigned in 2020 amidst a political crisis. Despite losing his parliamentary seat in the 2022 general election, he remained active in politics and shifted party affiliation several times. His political career has spanned more than 75 years, from joining protests opposing citizenship policies for non-Malays in the Malayan Union in the 1940s to forming the Gerakan Tanah Air coalition in 2022. Mahathir played a pivotal role in leading the opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan to victory in the 2018 general elections. Mahathir's political views have shifted during his life, and are shaped by his Malay nationalism and Islamic religious beliefs.

2. Tunku Abdul Rahman (1903 - 1990)

With an HPI of 69.87, Tunku Abdul Rahman is the 2nd most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 48 different languages.

Tunku Abdul Rahman (8 February 1903 – 6 December 1990), commonly referred to as Tunku, was a Malaysian statesman who served as prime minister of Malaysia from 1957 to 1970. He previously served as the only chief minister of Malaya from 1955 to 1957, as President of UMNO from 1951 to 1971, and as leader of the Alliance Party from 1952 to 1971. Abdul Rahman was the second longest serving Malaysian prime minister and the first to hold the position. As prime minister, he supervised the Malayan independence process and the formation of Malaysia. As a result, he is widely regarded as Malaysia's "founding father". Born a prince in the Kedah Sultanate, Tunku studied law in St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and became a civil servant and district officer. In 1949, he became a prosecutor. In 1951, he defeated C. M. Yusuf and Ahmad Fuad Hassan in the UMNO party leadership election to become President of UMNO. In 1952, he led UMNO into an electoral pact with MCA and MIC under the Alliance Party. He then led Alliance to a landslide victory during the 1955 general elections, and became chief minister of Malaya in a coalition government. Upon becoming chief minister, Tunku sought to end the Emergency with the Malayan Communist Party in a series of peace talks, but failed. In 1956, he initiated negotiations for Malayan independence from the United Kingdom, which was secured in the Treaty of London. In 1957, he led the Malayan proclamation of independence, and became its first prime minister. He secured his second term in 1959, and was instrumental in the formation of Malaysia in 1963, where he remained as prime minister. He guided the Alliance to a third term in 1964, but was faced with domestic political instabilities, notably its relationship with Singapore, causing its expulsion from Malaysia in 1965. Although he ran for a fourth term in the 1969 general elections and won a narrow majority, post election demonstrations sparked racial riots nationwide, and he resigned in 1970, succeeded by Abdul Razak Hussein, his deputy prime minister. After retiring from politics in 1971, Tunku remained active in sports and religious affairs, serving as the president of the Asian Football Confederation from 1958 to 1977, and as the first secretary-general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation from 1970 to 1973. He briefly returned to politics in the 1980s and opposed Mahathir Mohamad during the 1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis, publicly endorsing Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and Parti Melayu Semangat 46 in the 1990 general elections. In 1990, he died in Kuala Lumpur at the age of 87.

3. Abdullah of Pahang (b. 1959)

With an HPI of 66.27, Abdullah of Pahang is the 3rd most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 44 different languages.

Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (Jawi: السلطان عبدﷲ رعاية الدين المصطفى بالله شاه ابن المرحوم سلطان حاج أحمد شاه; ; born 30 July 1959) is the Sultan of Pahang. Abdullah was born during the reign of his grandfather, Sultan Abu Bakar, and became heir apparent when his father, Sultan Ahmad Shah, acceded to the throne of Pahang in 1974. He was created Crown Prince of Pahang on 1 July 1975. He was educated at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and later pursued a Diploma in International Relations and Diplomacy at Worcester College, Oxford and Queen Elizabeth College in 1980 until 1981. In 1986, he married Tunku Azizah Aminah. They had 10 children, notably Hassanal Ibrahim, Muhammad Iskandar and Puteri Iman Afzan, including one adopted son, Amir Nasser. Abdullah became Sultan of Pahang upon his father's abdication in January 2019 who later died in May 2019. On 31 January 2019, Abdullah was sworn in as the 16th King of Malaysia from 2019 to 2024. Abdullah played an unusually prominent role in domestic politics, particularly during the 2020–2022 Malaysian political crisis and the intricate negotiations that followed the 2022 general election, which resulted in a hung parliament. As a result of this, his reign saw the most prime ministers of any monarch in Malaysia.

4. Anwar Ibrahim (b. 1947)

With an HPI of 66.12, Anwar Ibrahim is the 4th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 50 different languages.

Anwar bin Ibrahim (Jawi: أنوار بن إبراهيم‎; born 10 August 1947), also known as DSAI and PMX, is a Malaysian politician who has been the 10th and current prime minister of Malaysia since 2022. A member of the People's Justice Party, he has been the party's president since 2018. Anwar also served as the finance minister since his premiership and the Member of Parliament for Tambun since 2022, as well as the chairman of the political coalition Pakatan Harapan (PH) since 2020. A University of Malaya graduate, Anwar served as president of the National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students as well as Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement of Malaysia before joining UMNO the then dominant party in the long-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition. He was the 7th deputy prime minister since 1993 as well as finance minister since 1991 and was prominent in Malaysia's response to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. In 1998, Anwar was removed from all posts by the prime minister Mahathir Mohamad and went on to spearhead the Reformasi movement against the government. He was jailed in April 1999 on charges of corruption and sodomy until his release in 2004 after his conviction was overturned. He made a comeback as the 12th leader of the opposition from 2008 to 2015. He merged opposition parties into the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition, which unsuccessfully contested in the 2008 and 2013 general elections. He disputed the results of the 2013 elections and led a protest in response. In 2014, Anwar's attempt to become the First Minister of Selangor in the 2014 Kajang Move which led to a nine-month political crisis, which ended when he was sentenced to another five years in prison after a second sodomy conviction in 2015. While still in prison, Anwar re-joined Mahathir Mohamad in the new Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition in absentia, which went on to win the 2018 general election. Mahathir outlined a plan for Anwar to take over from himself as prime minister after an unspecified interim period. Anwar received a royal pardon from Yang di-Pertuan Agong Muhammad V and was released from prison in May 2018. He returned to parliament in the 2018 Port Dickson by-election while his wife Wan Azizah Wan Ismail served as the deputy prime Minister in the PH administration. The collapse of the coalition during the 2020–2022 Malaysian political crisis led to the new Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition under Muhyiddin Yassin being sworn in and Anwar becoming the 16th leader of the opposition for the second time from 2020 to 2022. After leading Pakatan Harapan to win a plurality of seats at the 2022 Malaysian general election, Anwar was sworn in as the tenth Prime Minister of Malaysia on 24 November 2022. On 2 December 2022, Anwar appointed various members of parliament from Pakatan Harapan, Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), and UMNO to serve as ministers in the cabinet of the newly formed unity government. Anwar named himself as the Finance Minister. During his tenure, he and his government faced criticism for implementing numerous conservative policies, as well as the discharge not amounting to acquittal of current Malaysian deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who faced corruption charges. Moreover, former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak also saw his prison sentence halved and fine reduced during Anwar's tenure, sparking further concerns. Anwar, referred to as a liberal reformer and intellectual, has advocated for Islamic democracy and has stated he hopes Malaysia will become an example of democratic practices in the Muslim world. He supports the Islamic concept of Ummah as a framework for democracy in Muslim countries and calls for judicial independence, good governance and rejection of authoritarianism. While he initially supported affirmative action policies for Malays due to concerns about the dominance of Malaysian Chinese in businesses as a youth activist in the 1960s, after leaving prison he considered "Ketuanan Melayu" a major problem and called for transitioning to "affirmative-action policies premised on need instead of race" and providing government support to those living in poverty. Many people and scholars have described him as a "uniting figure" for the opposition in Malaysia during his imprisonment and trials. As prime minister, he has emphasised implementing measures such as diesel subsidy cuts for fiscal responsibility.

5. Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (b. 1939)

With an HPI of 66.00, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is the 5th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 46 different languages.

Abdullah bin Ahmad Badawi (Jawi: عبد الله بن احمد بدوي, Malay pronunciation: [abdullah]; born 26 November 1939) is a Malaysian politician who served as the fifth Prime Minister of Malaysia from 2003 to 2009. He was also the sixth president of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the largest political party (at the time) in Malaysia, and led the governing Barisan Nasional (BN) parliamentary coalition. He is informally known as Pak Lah, Pak meaning 'Uncle' or 'Sir', while Lah is taken from his name 'Abdullah'. He was also a Member of Parliament (MP) for Kepala Batas for eight consecutive terms, from 1978 to 2013. During the later part of Abdullah's administration, his government faced criticism for economic policies and performance, including concerns about inflation and the rising cost of living.

6. Abdul Halim of Kedah (1927 - 2017)

With an HPI of 65.88, Abdul Halim of Kedah is the 6th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 42 different languages.

Al-Mu’tassimu Billahi Muhibbuddin Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Badlishah (Jawi: المرحوم السلطان المعتصم بالله محب الدين توانکو الحاج عبدالحليم معظم شاه ابن المرحوم سلطان بدلي شاه; 28 November 1927 – 11 September 2017) was the 28th Sultan of Kedah from 1958 until his death in 2017, and served twice as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 1970 to 1975 and from 2011 to 2016. He was the first and only ruler to reign as Yang di-Pertuan Agong twice, as well as the oldest elected to the office. Prior to his death, he was the second longest-reigning living monarch in the world after Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.

7. Abdul Razak Hussein (1922 - 1976)

With an HPI of 64.39, Abdul Razak Hussein is the 7th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 36 different languages.

Abdul Razak bin Hussein (Jawi: عبد الرزاق بن حسين; 11 March 1922 – 14 January 1976) was a Malaysian lawyer and politician who served as the second prime minister of Malaysia from 1970 until his death in 1976. He also served as the first deputy prime minister of Malaysia from 1957 to 1970. He is referred to as the Father of Development (Bapa Pembangunan). During his term as prime minister, Abdul Razak launched the Malaysian New Economic Policy (NEP), a program aimed at reducing the socioeconomic disparity between ethnic communities, particularly those of the ethnic Malay and Chinese. He also oversaw a realignment of Malaysia foreign policy away from his predecessor's pro-West and anti-Communist attitude and towards neutrality, with the country becoming a member of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1970. Abdul Razak was also the figure responsible for setting up Barisan Nasional (BN), which held power uninterrupted from its inception in 1974 to 2018. His eldest son, Najib Razak, became the sixth prime minister in 2009; however, later became infamous for his involvement in the 1MDB corruption scandal, which led to his conviction on multiple charges of corruption, abuse of power, and money laundering.

8. Najib Razak (b. 1953)

With an HPI of 63.86, Najib Razak is the 8th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 66 different languages.

Mohammad Najib bin Abdul Razak (Jawi: محمد نجيب بن عبد الرزاق, Malay: [muhammad nadʒɪb]; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia from 2009 to 2018. In 2020, he was convicted of corruption in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal, one of the largest money-laundering and embezzlement scandals in history. He is the son of former prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein. Najib served as the chairman of the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition from April 2009 to May 2018 and as the president of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) from November 2008 to May 2018. However, the coalition experienced an unprecedented defeat in the 2018 general election, attributed to corruption charges involving Najib and his family, which eroded public trust in the ruling party. The introduction of the Goods and Services Tax, widely regarded as unpopular, also significantly contributed to the decline in support. Najib was elected to the Parliament of Malaysia in 1976, at the age of 23, replacing his deceased father in the Pahang-based seat of Pekan. In the same year, he was appointed the head of UMNO Youth's Pekan branch and became a member of the youth wing's Executive Council. In the early years of his political career, Najib took on a deputy minister role in 1976, and between 1982 and 1986, he was the Menteri Besar of Pahang. Thereafter, until 2009, he was rotated throughout the Cabinet of Malaysia, taking on various ministerial portfolios in defence, education, culture, youth and sports, and finally finance. Between 1993 and 2009, Najib was a vice-president of UMNO. During his tenure as Deputy Prime Minister, he was accused of being involved in the 2006 Altantuya Shaariibuu murder case, but he denied any involvement in the case. Najib's tenure as prime minister, between 2009 and 2018, was marked by economic liberalisation measures, such as cuts to government subsidies, which were unpopular among the public. After the 2013 election, his government pursued a number of its critics on sedition charges, the imprisonment of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim following a conviction for sodomy and the implementation of a Goods and Services Tax (GST). He was Prime Minister during the Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disaster and a dispute with North Korea following the assassination of Kim Jong-nam. In 2015, Najib became implicated in a major corruption scandal involving state investment firm 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) which led to rallies calling for his resignation, spearheaded by the grassroots movement Bersih. These protests culminated in the Malaysian Citizens' Declaration by Mahathir Mohamad, Pakatan Harapan and NGOs which sought to oust Najib. Najib's response to the corruption accusations was to tighten his grip on power by replacing then-deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, suspending two newspapers and pushing through parliament a controversial National Security Council Bill that provides the prime minister with unprecedented powers. Najib's various subsidy cuts have contributed to soaring living costs, while fluctuating oil prices and the fallout from the 1MDB scandal led to a depreciation of the Malaysian currency. These ended with BN's loss in the 2018 general elections. Najib then conceded defeat and promised to help facilitate a smooth transition of power. On 3 July 2018, Najib was arrested by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), which investigated how RM42 million (US$10.6 million) went from SRC International, a company related to 1MDB, into Najib's bank account. In the process, the police seized a number of fashion accessories worth $273 million while searching through his properties. Najib was subsequently charged and convicted by the High Court on abuse of power, money laundering and criminal breach of trust, becoming the first Prime Minister of Malaysia to be convicted of corruption, and was sentenced to 12 years' imprisonment and fined RM210 million. At the same time, Najib was also simultaneously directed to settle RM1.69 billion in tax arrears owed to the Inland Revenue Board (IRB). The sentence was upheld by the Federal Court on 23 August 2022. He is currently serving his sentence in Kajang Prison. Najib's political career has been marred by numerous controversies and allegations of corruption.

9. Iskandar of Johor (1932 - 2010)

With an HPI of 63.56, Iskandar of Johor is the 9th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

Sultan Iskandar ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail (Jawi: المتوكل على ﷲ سلطان إسكندر الحاج ابن المرحوم سلطان إسماعيل الخالدي; 8 April 1932 – 22 January 2010) was Sultan of Johor, succeeding his father Sultan Ismail upon the latter's death in 1981. He reigned as the eighth Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the constitutional monarch of Malaysia, from 1984 to 1989. Sultan Iskandar's reign as Sultan of Johor lasted almost 29 years until his death in 2010. His children are married into the different royal houses of Malaysia. His eldest daughter Tunku Kamariah married the Tengku Laksamana of Selangor, Tengku Sulaiman Shah. His successor and eldest son Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar married Raja Zarith Sofiah of the Perak Royal Family. His daughter Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah married the heir apparent of Pahang, now Sultan Abdullah. His younger son Tunku Abdul Majid married a member of the Kedah Royal Family, Tunku Teh Mazni. As was the case with his grandfather, Sultan Ibrahim, Sultan Iskandar's independent mindset resulted in strained relations with the Malaysian federal government on numerous occasions. This was most prevalent during his time as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, as there were a number of notable public incidents involved Sultan Iskandar. Nevertheless, Sultan Iskandar was reputed to show great concern to his subjects, and was held in high esteem by many of his subjects–particularly the Malays and Orang Aslis. His time as the Sultan of Johor was marred by accusations of violence and brutality. Sultan Iskandar was notorious for his bad temper which often resulted in violent episodes of rage and brutality to members of his staff and the general public. The 1992 Gomez incident surrounding the Sultan eventually culminated in the removal of "legal immunity" for members of the royal family. Sultan Iskandar is reputed to have been a staunch disciplinarian, with willingness to occasionally voice personal opinions on governmental issues. On the personal side, subjects who approached the Sultan in his later years described him as a person with a warm and generous personality. However, past critics had also argued that Sultan Iskandar was a person with a turbulent temper. These claims were made by citing records of notorious incidents, which include an experience of being disinherited from being the Tunku Mahkota of Johor (or Crown Prince in English) by his father, in 1961, as well as a series of alleged criminal acts occurring between the 1970s and the 1990s which were published in the press and provoked widespread moral outrage within the Malaysian public. During his younger days as a prince, Iskandar was commonly known by his first name, "Mahmood" or his full name "Mahmood Iskandar". He largely discontinued the use of his first name after he became Sultan in 1981, although some people occasionally referred to him by his full name.

10. Hussein Onn (1922 - 1990)

With an HPI of 63.00, Hussein Onn is the 10th most famous Malaysian Politician. His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Hussein Onn (Jawi: حسين بن عون; 12 February 1922 – 29 May 1990) was a Malaysian lawyer and politician who served as the third prime minister of Malaysia in 1976 to 1981.

People

Pantheon has 31 people classified as Malaysian politicians born between 1895 and 1969. Of these 31, 13 (41.94%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Malaysian politicians include Mahathir Mohamad, Abdullah of Pahang, and Anwar Ibrahim. The most famous deceased Malaysian politicians include Tunku Abdul Rahman, Abdul Halim of Kedah, and Abdul Razak Hussein. As of April 2024, 3 new Malaysian politicians have been added to Pantheon including Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, and Penny Wong.