Ismail Sabri Confirmed As UMNO's PM Candidate, Vows To Implement Budget '23 After GE15

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob remains Barisan Nasional's poster boy and prime ministerial candidate in the upcoming general election (GE15), ruling United Malays National Organisation party leader Zahid confirmed. UMNO President stressed that the party's position on the matter will not change if the UMNO-led Barisan Nasional coalition were to form the next government.

• Efforts to secure prime ministerial nomination had earlier been cited as a reason why Ismail Sabri, who doubles as UMNO Vice President, took a long time before yielding to calls from fellow UMNO leaders to call a snap election.
• Bernama reported that regional UMNO divisions unanimously supported the motion to designate Ismail Sabri as the party's prime ministerial candidate during a series of meetings held over the weekend.
• Speaking at one of the divisional meetings, the Prime Minister confirmed that the record-breaking Budget 2023 will effectively serve as UMNO's manifesto, as he argued that the government has the means to implement the spending plan once newly elected parliament approves it.