Malaysia votes in close election

Voters have braved long lines in Malaysia to take part in a historic general election that is widely expected to go down to the wire.

Voting began at 8am local time at more than 8,200 polling centres across the country after a last-ditch campaign frenzy that went until the stroke of midnight. Polling stations close at 5pm on Sunday, with results expected to emerge within hours.

The run-up to the election has polarised the nation of 28m people, with the powerful ruling coalition, led by Prime Minister Najib Razak, facing off against a revitalised opposition, led by Anwar Ibrahim, looking to unseat its rival for the first time since independence from Britain in 1957.

A massive front-page headline on The Star newspaper proclaimed a "Day of Reckoning". The newspaper reported that bus and train terminals were swamped with voters traveling to their home districts to cast ballots.

Analysts say that for the first time since Malaysia's independence in 1957, there is a real possibility that the opposition may be able to unseat the ruling party. Opinion polls suggest support for the two sides is evenly matched.

The possibility of an end to more than half a century of one-party rule has made this the hardest-fought election anyone can remember.

The hunger for change, especially among younger Malaysians, has given the opposition real momentum during the campaign.

But the ruling party has significant advantages, he says, in the cash it has spent on crowd-pleasing hand-outs, and in the way Malaysia's parliamentary system over-represents rural areas, where the government's support is strongest.

Nearly eight million people cast ballots in the first four hours of voting, comprising almost 60% of the 13.3 million registered voters, the election commission said.

Barisan Nasional, while credited with bringing economic development and political stability, has also been tainted by allegations of corruption.

But it remains to be seen whether Anwar's coalition, comprising parties of different ethnicities and religions, can persuade voters to choose an alternative government.

Najib, 59, said he was confident that Malaysians would retain his coalition and even return the two-thirds parliamentary majority Barisan Nasional lost in the 2008 polls.

During the last four years, he said during a campaign rally on Thursday, the coalition had proved it could "protect and benefit all Malaysians".

"The task of transformation is not over yet," he told supporters in his home state of Pahang on Saturday.