As the major clash for the PKR deputy presidency fizzles out, all eyes are now on a close battle for the leadership of the party's youth wing.

In one corner is incumbent Shamsul Iskandar Mohd Akin, 38, with his challenger the outgoing party supreme council member, Badrul Hisham Shaharin.

amk pkr youth agm congress 280510 shamsul iskandar Shamsul Iskandar ( right ), the one-term Youth chief, currently leads with 3,981 votes to Badrul Hisham's 3,273 votes.

With just one round of balloting to go this weekend - involving 56 divisions in Selangor, Johor, Sarawak and the Kimanis division in Sabah - Shamsul looks set to maintain his lead.

This is due to Shamsul's advantage of incumbency and the fact that Badrul Hisham is not as active in the above-mentioned states.

During the first weekend of voting, Badrul Hisham surged ahead due to his support in the Kedah, Penang and Perak divisions. Some party insiders consider that Badrul Hisham has exhausted his vote bank.

‘Lawyer vs street fighter'

However, Shamsul's campaign is also being held back by his infamous about turn , choosing to defend his post after backtracking on a bid join the major league by contesting for the party's vice-presidency.

Although some party insiders consider Shamsul's track record lacklustre, the lawyer turned politician is still regarded as someone more familiar and grounded compared to Badrul Hisham, a powerful orator with a ‘street fighter' approach to politics.

Badrul Hisham's campaign is also apparently hampered by the fact that his running mate - Chang Lih Kang - is Chinese.

pkr headquarters nominations chegubard badrul hisham sharin "Some people has asked us: ‘Why Chinese? Why not Malay?" said a source from Badrul Hisham's ( left ) camp.

Chang, who is the Teja state assemblyperson, is contesting for the movement's deputy Youth chief. He faces Khairul Anuar Ahmad Zainudin, a trade unionist by profession, the incumbent PKR Youth vice-chief and Selangor Youth wing chief.

Currently, Khairul leads with 3,908 votes to Chang's 3,054 votes.

Irregularities claimed

Badrul Hisham's camp had also questioned the uncharacteristically large turnout in Sandakan, Tawau and Libaran divisions - where almost half the movements members voted, bucking the national turnout average of 8.4 percent.

The latest example was during the last weekend's voting for the Batu Sapi division which saw nearly 600 Youth wing members turning up.

"During the Batu Sapi by-election, we had problem finding polling and counting agents from our ranks. But now suddenly there is a huge turnout," complained Mohd Yaser Abdul Rahman, the operation room coordinator for Badrul Hisham's team.

Mohd Yaser also claimed that ground reports on the voting result also greatly differed from what was tallied by the party headquarters, where Shamsul drew 509 votes to Badrul Hisham's 86.

He urged the party to investigate these irregularities to maintain the integrity of the polls.

Expect three new vice-chiefs

azmizam zaman huri 161110 Meanwhile, Kota Raja PKR Youth chief Azmizam Zaman Huri ( right ) looks set to secure the most votes for the movement's vice-chief post.

Azmizam currently leads the race with 3,807 votes.

Two others who are likely to win the three vice-chief posts contested are lawyer Erveana Ansari Ali, the daughter of Tuaran PKR division chief Ansari Abdullah, and Simpang Pulai state assemblyperson Chan Ming Kai.

Erveana and Chan have garnered 2,872 and 2,786 votes respectively.