was suggested that a Malay should replace Lim Chong Eu as Penang Chief Minister after his term expired. Gerakan threatened to resign from BN unless it was allocated more seats. It was then allocated 9 seats, it nevertheless lost 4 of these, thereby ending with the same number of seats (5). It also saw increased pressure from Democratic Action Party which increased its representation in the Penang state assembly and overtook Gerakan as the second largest party in the state. In the 1990 general election, it suffered a setback when Lim Chong Eu was defeated by Lim Kit Siang of Democratic Action Party in his Padang Kota constituency, after which Lim Chong Eu retired from politics. Nevertheless, Gerakan retained the post of Chief Minister of Penang with Dr. Koh Tsu Koon taking over the position. In the 1995 general election, Gerakan bounced back, winning 7 parliamentary seats and 23 state seats. For nearly four decades, from 1969 to 2008, although not necessarily the biggest party (UMNO was the biggest party in Penang for many years from the late 1970s onward), Gerakan played a dominant role in the Penang State Legislature, and became closely associated with the fortune of Penang. In that time there had been only two chief ministers in Penang, Lim and Koh Tsu Koon, both from Gerakan. In 1996, in an attempt to win broader support, the party shifted its headquarter to Kuala Lumpur. In the 2004 general election, Gerakan achieved its best electoral result, winning 10 parliamentary seats and 30 state seats. On 27 August 2005, its president Lim Keng Yaik was challenged by the Deputy Kerk Choo Ting in its party election. Lim retained his party President post after winning with 983 votes against 628 votes for Kerk. Koh Tsu Koon became the new Deputy President which he won unopposed after the nomination day for the party election. 2008–2017 In 2008, Lim Keng Yaik retired from politics after relinquishing the post of party president in 2007. Koh Tsu Koon took over as acting president in 2007, and won the post of President uncontested in the 2008 party elections. In the 2008 general election, the party suffered its worst electoral defeat. The party retained only two parliament seats, compared to the 10 seats it had before the election. As a result, the party lost its only cabinet post in the ensuing cabinet shuffle. In addition, Gerakan also