Timeline: 1946 - Joins the United Malays National Organization (UMNO).
1964 - Is elected to Parliament for the first time.
1969 - Loses his seat in Parliament and is expelled from the UNMO.
1972 - Returns back to UMNO.
1973 - Is appointed a Senator in the Malaysian parliament.
1974 - Is elected as minister of education.
1976 - Becomes deputy prime minister.
July 1981 - Becomes Malaysia's fourth prime minister, minister of home affairs, and minister of justice.
January 1989 - Has heart bypass surgery.
1998 - Dismisses his deputy Anwar Ibrahim and accuses him of sodomy and corruption.