1998 Cambodian general election

none Cambodia 26 July 1998 1993 2003 All 122 seats in the National Assembly 62 93.7% ( 4.1pp) Cambodian People's Party Chea SimHun Sen was the CPP's official prime ministerial candidate and leading figure throughout the campaign. 41.4 64 51 FUNCINPEC Norodom Ranariddh 31.7 43 58 Sam Rainsy Party Sam Rainsy 14.3 15 New 500px Results by provinces Prime Minister Ung Huot (first)Hun Sen (second) FUNCINPECCPP Prime Minister after Hun Sen Cambodian People's Party General elections were held in Cambodia on 26 July 1998. The result was a victory for the Cambodian People's Party (CPP), which won 64 of the 122 seats, resulting in its leader Hun Sen becoming prime minister. Opposition parties sought a recount and claimed there had been irregularities, claims supported by many international observers. Voter turnout was 93.7%.Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume II, p70 0-19-924959-8 Background Following the disputed 1993 general elections, Norodom Ranariddh of FUNCINPEC and Hun Sen of the CPP had become co-Prime Ministers. In July 1997, Sen forced Ranariddh out of government after a dispute on to handle rebellious members of FUNCINPEC and former Khmer Rouge leaders. Ranariddh was subsequently replaced by Ung Huot. The removal of Ranariddh led to at least 89 extrajudicial killings. General elections were announced for May 1998, but were later postponed until July by the National Assembly as preparations including voter registration were running late.Elections held in 1998 IPU On 30 March 1997 an opposition rally outside the National Assembly was hit by a grenade attack, with at least 16 killed and 100 injured. Electoral system The 122 members of the National Assembly were elected by closed list proportional representation from 21 multi-member constituencies based on the provinces. There were 1,380 individual polling stations. At the end of polling, ballot boxes were taken to Commune Election Commissions set up by the National Election Committee (NEC) and were counted the next day. Statements regarding the count were added up at the Provincial Election Commissions, and the national tally made at the NEC. Parties could make complaints at any of the four levels during the count.Vander Weyden Patrick Parliamentary elections in Cambodia 1998 Electoral Studies December 2000 19 4 615–621 10.1016/S0261-3794(00)00004-4 The results were countersigned and the statement of the count were announced outside the counting centers. Conduct The observation of the election was coordinated by the United Nations with its Joint International Observer Group (JIOG), which consisted of European Union and ASEAN representatives. More than 500 foreign monitors worked alongside a national observer group to keep track of the voting process. Many observers and other international organizations reported that the electoral process was heavily influenced by the CPP and that there had been intimidation, violence, coercion, lack of accountability and transparency.Downie Sue Cambodia's 1998 Election: Understanding Why it Was Not a 'Miracle on the Mekong' Australian Journal of International Affairs April 2000 54 1 43–61 10.1080/00049910050007032 154920354 Following the elections, opposition party politicians and activists were reported to be relocating towards provincial cities and Phnom Penh and many were concerned about concealing their location due to fear of persecution.Vander Weyden Patrick Parliamentary elections in Cambodia 1998 Electoral Studies December 2000 19 4 615–621 10.1016/S0261-3794(00)00004-4 A lack of training, many complicated forms, and packing procedures caused difficulties with the election count, especially in areas with low levels of education, literacy, and electoral experience. The NEC noted that there was a lack of space and planning, to the point where it was difficult to retrieve controls and recounts. Ballot materials were stacked on top of each other, which made it hard for the NEC to deal with the large number of complaints and demands for recounts. In total there were 800 complaints filed, 304 passing preliminary investigation related to voter intimidation, recount demands, and other concerned programs. Opinion polls The Institut Francais de la Statistique, de Sondage d'Opinion et de Recherche sur le Cambodge (IFRASSORC), had conducted Opinion polls throughout the country, surveying a total of 1,875 people and each asking 3 questions.Staff Post Opinion Poll Results https://phnompenhpost.com/national/opinion-poll-results 2023-06-16 phnompenhpost.com en This poll will show the choice of "Don't Know/No Opinion", but will not be factoring this choice. Polling FirmFieldwork dateSample SizeMost preferred Prime MinisterHun SenNorodom RanariddhSam RainsyPen SovannSon SannOtherDon't Know/No OpinionIFRASSORC3 Mar 19981,87516.6%13.4%7.8%1.2%0.4%1.559.1%Do you want Prince Norodom Ranariddh to come back to Cambodia to compete in the next elections?YesNoDon't Know/No Opinion76.9%3.7%19.4%Do you want a ceasefire to be proclaimed all over Cambodia?YesNoDon't Know/No Opinion95.4%3%1.6% Results File:Cambodian general election, 1998.svg Cambodian People's Party 2030790 64 +13 FUNCINPEC 1554405 43 –15 Sam Rainsy Party 699665 15 New Khmer Democratic Party 90000 0 New Cambodian National Sustaining Party 71093 0 New #00FFFF Liberal Democratic Party for National Salvation 46424 0 New Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party 45849 0 –10 Nationalist Party 37308 0 New Buddhist Liberal Party 32959 0 New Khmer Angkor Party 26482 0 New Cambodian Citizens' Party 23713 0 New Cambodian Unity Party 19232 0 New Party of Women Salvaging Cambodia 18892 0 New Farmers' Party 15597 0 New New Society Party 15066 0 New Republican Coalition Party 14869 0 0 Liberal Democratic Party 14088 0 0 Social Beehive Democratic Party 13952 0 New Free Development Republican Party 13780 0 0 Rally for National Solidarity 13038 0 0 National Unification Party 11089 0 New National Restoration Party 10451 0 New Light of Freedom Party 10027 0 New MOULINAKA 8395 0 –1 Free Independent Democracy Party 3938 0 0 Neutral Democratic Party of Cambodia 3869 0 0 Free Republican Party 1654 0 0 Twelve other parties 55863 0 – 155189 +2 5395595 Nohlen et al. Aftermath On 30 June, there was controversy surrounding the seat allocation formula. The English-language press of Phnom Penh and opposition parties claimed that the formula had been tampered with after the election results have been collected in order to favor the CPP. Annex V of the Law on the Election of National Assembly described the seat allocation method and all parties were informed and agreed to it in June. However, there appeared to be a difference between the original Khmer version and the English version. The misunderstanding led to large protests from the opposition. See also List of members of the National Assembly of Cambodia, 1998–2003 Notes References General Category:General elections in Cambodia Cambodia Cambodia