Malaysia’s longest-serving prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has been announced as a candidate for the Langkawi parliament seat in his home state of Kedah in the general elections, turning the popular holiday island and Barisan Nasional (BN) ruling coalition’s stronghold into a battleground to watch. Mahathir warned on Friday that elections next month will be the dirtiest in the country’s history due to cheating by the “monster” prime minister, but insisted his opposition alliance has a fighting chance. The stakes are high for Mahathir. If he wins it is a sign that he is still accepted by the people of Langkawi, who he had helped to uplift economically in 1987 when he declared the island status to be a  free port.