Democratic Action Party

The Democratic Action Party (DAP; Malay: Parti Tindakan Demokratik) is a social democratic political party in Malaysia, sitting on the centre-left of the political spectrum. As one of three component parties of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, it formed the federal government after defeating Barisan Nasional (BN) in the 2018 Malaysian general election, ending the party's 53 year-long stay in the opposition. However, before the coalition finished its first term, defections from partnering parties caused it to lose power after 22 months, culminating in the 2020 Malaysian political crisis. At the 2022 Malaysian general election, the PH coalition which the DAP was part of was returned to power again, albeit without a majority, leading it to form a unity coalition government with its traditional political rivals. The DAP was founded in 1965 by Malaya–based members of the Singaporean People's Action Party (PAP), Chen Man Hin and Devan Nair, shortly after Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia. Singapore's expulsion was in part due to intense ideological differences between the PAP and the federal government, led by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). UMNO favoured the idea of Ketuanan Melayu and Malay nationalism for the country. In contrast, the PAP favoured a more egalitarian and civic nationalist Malaysian Malaysia, which the DAP would continue to espouse. Following the expulsion, the PAP was elected as the ruling government of a newly sovereign Singapore and would continue to operate on a platform of civic nationalism. However, unlike the DAP, the PAP became more conservative and moved towards the centre-right. Historically a democratic socialist party, the DAP draws much of its support from progressive voters with a stable electorate from voters of cities, coastal regions, the middle class, and the working class. The party's strongholds are primarily in the urban and semi-urban areas of Penang, Perak, Selangor,...