Heads of government In the executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

's many

states State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

take on various titles. Seven out of nine in the

Peninsular A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . ...

who each have historical monarchs are known as the Menteri Besar ( Jawi: , literally ''Grand Minister'' or ''

First Minister A first minister is any of a variety of leaders of government cabinets. The term literally has the same meaning as "prime minister" but is typically chosen to distinguish the office-holder from a superior prime minister. Currently the title of ' ...

''; abbreviated as MB), while the rest in the federation are titled Chief Minister (abbreviated as CM; in Malay: ''Ketua Menteri;'' abbreviated as KM) and previously

Sarawak Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...

until it was changed to the title Premier (''

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

)'' since 2022. For four states without a monarch, the title is used The nine hereditary rulers of the Malay states and the appointed governors of the other four states serve as constitutional and ceremonial heads of their states, while the state executive authority rests with the Menteris Besar, chief ministers and premier. Following elections to the state legislative assembly, the ruler or governor usually invites the party (or coalition) with a majority of seats to form the

state government A state government is the government that controls a subdivision of a country in a federal form of government, which shares political power with the federal or national government. A state government may have some level of political autonom ...

. The ruler or governor appoints and swears in the Menteri Besar, chief ministers and premier, whose executive council (or Cabinet in Sabah and Sarawak) are collectively responsible to the assembly. Based on the

Westminster system The Westminster system, or Westminster model, is a type of parliamentary system, parliamentary government that incorporates a series of Parliamentary procedure, procedures for operating a legislature, first developed in England. Key aspects of ...

, given that he retains the confidence of the assembly, the terms of Menteris Besar, chief ministers and premier can last for the length of the assembly's life—a maximum of five years. There are no limits to the number of terms that the Menteri Besar, chief minister and premier can serve.

Background

In most states within Malaysia, the office was created by the British colonial government in 1948, in tandem with the creation of the

Federation of Malaya Malaya, officially the Federation of Malaya, was a country in Southeast Asia from 1948 to 1963. It succeeded the Malayan Union and, before that, British Malaya. It comprised eleven states – nine Malay states and two of the Straits Settleme ...

. However,

Johor Johor, also spelled Johore,'' is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore ...

was the first state to create the ''Menteri Besar'' position, subject to '' Undang-undang Tubuh Negeri Johor'' (Johor State Constitution) enforced by Sultan Abu Bakar. This had made Johor the first Malay state to adopt a system of

constitutional monarchy Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...

. After Malaya gained independence from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in 1957, the office bearer is appointed among the state legislative assembly members by the Sultans. The Menteri Besar, chief minister and premier usually come from the party (or coalition) which commands a majority in the state assembly.

Relations between the Menteris Besar, chief ministers, premier and other levels of government

For many decades, the first ministers (''Menteri Besar''), chief ministers (''Ketua Menteri'') and premier (''Premier'') met with each other and the prime minister at ''Mesyuarat Menteri-Menteri Besar, Ketua-Ketua Menteri dan premier''.

Selection process

Eligibility

By comparison, the thirteen state constitutions (''Undang-undang Tubuh Negeri'' or ''Perlembagaan Negeri'') have some similarities and also some differences in setting the principal qualifications one must meet to be eligible to the office of the Menteri Besar, chief minister and premier. A ''Menteri Besar'' or ''Ketua Menteri'' or ''Premier'' must be a

Malaysian citizen Malaysian nationality law details the conditions by which a person is a citizen of Malaysia. The primary law governing nationality requirements is the Constitution of Malaysia, which came into force on 27 August 1957. All persons born in Ma ...

, of at least 21 years of age and a member of state legislative assembly who commands the confidence of the majority of the members of the assembly. Upon appointment, he shall not hold any office of profit and engage in any trade, business or profession that will cause

conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple wikt:interest#Noun, interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates t ...

. For four states in Malaysia with governors (namely

Penang Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia along the Strait of Malacca. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. Th ...

Malacca Malacca (), officially the Historic State of Malacca (), is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state in Malaysia located in the Peninsular Malaysia#Other features, southern region of the Malay Peninsula, facing the Strait of Malacca ...

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

and

), the office of ''Ketua Menteri'' and ''Premier'' are open to any Malaysian citizen regardless of their religion, ethnicity, and gender. However, citizens by naturalization or registration are still prohibited by state laws.

Election

The Menteri Besar, chief minister and premier are elected through a majority in the state legislative assembly. This is procedurally established by the vote of confidence in the legislative assembly, as suggested by the Ruler (or Governor) of the state who is the appointing authority.

Oath

Since, according to the constitution, the Menteri Besar is appointed by the ruler (or, in case of the chief minister and premier, the governor), the swearing-in is done before the ruler (or governor) of the state.

Remuneration

Remuneration of the Menteri Besar, chief minister, premier as well as other members of the executive council (or Cabinet) and members of the state legislative assembly are to be decided by the respective state legislatures. Hence this varies from state to state according to their ordinance or enactment that amended by the state legislative.

Present Menteris Besar, chief ministers and premier

Timeline

Notes

References

{{Menteri Besars and Chief Ministers Chief ministers of Malaysian states Government of Malaysia Politics of Malaysia State political office-holders in Malaysia 20th-century Malaysian politicians 21st-century Malaysian politicians