KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—The party that ruled Malaysia for more than 60 years until a humiliating election defeat linked to the 1MDB scandal selected a new leader to replace former Prime Minister Najib Razak and to rebuild support among the ethnic Malay Muslim majority.
The choice of Zahid Hamidi, 65 years old, as the new president of the United Malays National Organization came in a vote by party division leaders late Saturday and represents a rightward turn to rebuild a foundation of Malay support, which splintered in recent...