Following Penang Gerakan and MCA's dismal performance in the 2008 general election, then state Umno liason committee chief Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had requested that the BN state chief come from his party.

Ahmad Zahid's rationale was based on Umno winning 11 out of 15 state seats while its partners in BN, Gerakan, MCA, and MIC, won none.

But current state Umno liason chief Zainal Abidin Osman said the request had just been a "one-off" statement by his party leader.

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