Mahathir renominates himself to be Malaysian premier

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia

Mahathir Mohamad will again run for Malaysia's prime minister office after meeting with the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition early Saturday morning.

Mahathir also claimed to have a majority required to form a new government.

"Therefore I am ready to stand as a candidate for prime minister," he said in a statement.

A prime minister candidate must get at least 112 seats in support from 222 seats in parliament.

Mahathir said the decision would be conveyed directly to Malaysia’s king.

The PH coalition confirmed Mahathir nomination Saturday.

"In order to sustain the struggle, Pakatan Harapan expressed its full support for Mahathir Mohamad as a prime minister candidate," said a statement for the President's Council.

Mahathir decided to resign as prime minister Feb. 24.

The Malaysian king accepted Mahathir's resignation before appointing him interim prime minister.

The political crisis began after Mahathir's supporters tried to form a new coalition to stem Anwar Ibrahim's appointment as Mahathir's successor as prime minister.

Mahathir previously promised Anwar that his long time rival would succeed him as prime minister when he formed a coalition in elections in 2018.