Muhyiddin expressed his decision to quit during a meeting with leaders from his party, Bersatu, minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohamad Redzuan Mohamad Yusof was quoted as saying by online news portal Malaysiakini.

"We just finished the meeting. Tomorrow there will be a special Cabinet meeting. After that, he will head to the National Palace to submit his resignation," he told Malaysiakini.

His aide confirmed this in a message to a media WhatsApp group.

"The prime minister will see the king to resign from his position in accordance to the Constitution as the prime minister does not have the majority. Wait for the king to make a decision," the aide said.

Read also: What next in Malaysia's political crisis?

The end of the road for Muhyiddin seemingly came after the opposition spurned his overtures, thus depriving him of crucial support needed to ensure he could win the motion of confidence that he promised to see through in a September parliament meeting.

In a last-ditch effort to prolong his rule, Muhyiddin last Friday promised a number of reform measures including limiting the premiership to two terms and giving the opposition leader Cabinet-level privileges in exchange for their votes to pass the confidence motion.

The opposition rejected his offer outright, putting him in an untenable position after he lost majority support in the parliament when over a dozen members from his own ruling coalition deserted him.

At least 15 lawmakers from the United Malays National Organization, the biggest party in the National Alliance government, had demanded he step down, citing his failure to contain the COVID-19 pandemic that has seen new infections in the five digits.

Without the 15 lawmakers, Muhyiddin controls only 100 seats in the 222-seat House of Representatives, the lower house of the parliament. Two seats are vacant due to deaths.

If Muhyiddin resigns, several names have been touted as his possible replacement, including his deputy Ismail Sabri Yaakob from UMNO and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Ismail Sabri is widely seen as having a higher prospect of winning back the rogue UMNO lawmakers' support and keeping the National Alliance government intact.

Read also: Malaysian PM defies calls to quit, wants confidence vote next month

Anwar commands the support of 89 lawmakers, and he needs to win over the rest of the opposition plus some from across the floor.

All eyes will be on the king, who may have to intervene again to resolve the political impasse as he did in February last year when former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad resigned due to political defections led by Muhyiddin.

Muhyiddin rose to power after he and a dozen lawmakers deserted Mahathir's Hope Alliance coalition to join hands with UMNO to form a new government.

The partnership, however, was fraught from the start as UMNO resented playing second fiddle to a junior party like Bersatu, and they jostled for positions and influence with ethnic Malay voters.

Alternatively, the king may leave it to the parliament to choose the one who commands the confidence of the majority of the lawmakers.

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