The Cambodian strongman’s party keeps control

THE day after Cambodia held its five-yearly local elections, both sides could claim some kind of victory. The ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) celebrated because, according to preliminary results—which both sides appear to accept—it won 1,162 of the country’s 1,646 communes. But the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) did remarkably well, increasing the communes it will now control more than tenfold, from 40 to 471. Unofficial totals suggest that it won 46% of the popular vote, up from the 30% the opposition won in 2012. The CPP eked out a slim majority with 51%. Voter turnout was an impressive 89.5%. Final results will not be released until June 25th.

As a general election looms next year, the results have given cheer to the CNRP. Yim Sovann, a party spokesman, notes that in the past the opposition’s share of the vote in national elections outpaced its local showing by 15 percentage points. On that pattern, he says the CNRP—formed when two opposition...