Transitioning from aggregated bipartism: state elections in Malaysia, May 2018-March 2022

This election article explains Malaysia's winding democratization trajectory from one-coalition predominance (1957-1990) to aggregated bipartism (1990-2015, with intermissions) to fluid multipartism (particularly in the aftermath of 2020 to the present day), with the help of multilevel party system framework. The findings demonstrate that state-level dynamics can facilitate or impede the formation and sustenance of aggregated bipartism, known as the Two-Coalition System, in Malaysia. I identify the state-level factors that affect the emergence of, and disruptions to, aggregated bipartism in 1990-2015, and analyse the outcome of 16 state elections held between May 2018 and March 2022 amidst Malaysia's transition from aggregated bipartism.