SHAH ALAM - Barisan Nasional (BN) candidate Datuk Khaidhirah Abu Zahar, popularly known as Dira Abu Zahar, has retained the Rim state seat in the 16th Melaka State Election with a majority of 7,090 votes.
Dira, who is a former actress, secured 9,847 votes, defeating Pakatan Harapan (PH) candidate Esma Eazreen, who received 2,757 votes in the two-cornered contest.
The victory marks Dira's second consecutive term as the Rim assemblyman after she first won the seat in the 2021 Melaka state election.
Dira made history in 2021 when she became the first Malaysian celebrity to be elected as a state assemblywoman.
She is the daughter of the late Datuk Seri Abu Zahar Ithnin, who served as Melaka's eighth Menteri Besar.
Following her first election victory, Dira served as Deputy Speaker of the Melaka State Legislative Assembly from December 2021 until April 2023.