Eng Ratanak, 19, second-year student at National University of Management

“To figure out which party to vote for, I would consider whether or not the party’s vision benefits both me and Cambodian society. Also, it’s important to consider if the vision is achievable, or if it can’t be accomplished. I need to know about each party’s past political achievements, since that can indicate success in the future.”

Lim Sovannarith, 23, second-year student at Royal University of Law and Economics

“First I would like to know what the party has done for developing our society and the political ideology the party uses. Then, I’ll make a prediction about which party will win the upcoming election. For example, if the ruling party wins most of the seats in the commune elections, they will probably win the election. If the opposition party wins, I’m afraid that there aren’t enough human resources for them to maintain leadership.”

Sous Sokserey, 21, student at CamEd Business School

“Before voting for any party, I need to look at their past goals and match it to their achievements. Regarding each party, I’ll research who the leader is, how the party is organised, and how they plan to achieve their goals. I personally prefer commune council leaders who are democratic and listen to the people to make the right decisions. To gather all this information, I cannot only listen to what the party says – I need to make my own personal judgments through analysing their actions.”

Eung Sokun, 20, first-year student at Institute of Foreign Languages

“First, I’ll study the history of the political parties to see what they’ve achieves. Second, I’ll figure out whether the parties are posing good solutions to our political problems. Third, I need to weigh in on the leader – I’ll look at the leader’s knowledge, attitude and experience. Finally, I’ll look at whether or not the party is stable internally.”

Ly Sarun, 20, third-year student at University of Health Sciences

“In order to choose a party, first, we have to understand each party’s goals and visions. Will they help improve our society? If they do, does it meet the country’s needs? Next we need to look at the party’s promises. We should figure out whether or not the party will actually keep their promises to Cambodia after winning the election. We need to be aware that some promises are impossible to keep in our current political situation.”