**Malaysia’s Anwar faces state crisis as key ally defects to opposition**

Malaysia’s Negeri Sembilan state has plunged deeper into political turmoil. Barisan Nasional (BN), a key partner in Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s coalition government, announced it has secured a simple majority to form a new state administration with the opposition. BN is the former ruling coalition led by the United Malays National Organisation (Umno). It ruled Malaysia for decades. The defection turns an extraordinary dispute within the state palace into the sharpest state-level test of Anwar’s fragile alliance. The challenge comes less than two years before a national election is due.