The Philippines elected a new Congress on May 13 in midterm elections that proceeded more peacefully than expected. Malaysia held its most heated general election to date on May 5, with the opposition Pakatan Rakyat coalition challenging the longstanding dominance of the ruling Barisan Nasional for the first time. Meanwhile, Cambodia’s local elections last June highlighted challenges facing opposition parties as well as voters’ increasing interest in the democratic process, both of which will be on display during the upcoming national elections on July 28. We look at trends in these elections, by the numbers.
The Philippines
39 million
Filipinos who cast ballots in the 2013 midterm elections. The Philippine electorate voted to fill 18,000 elected positions nationwide, including all 229 lower house seats and 12 out of 24 upper house seats in Congress.
82%
Percentage of registered voters in the northern Mindanao region who cast ballots. The regional branch of the Commission on Elections attributed higher voter turnout to a growing public trust in the automated election system.
3,236
Votes received by each of two mayoral candidates, Marvic Feraren and Boyet Py, in the town of San Teodoro in Oriental Mindoro province. Feraren, the son of a former mayor, won after two rounds of coin flipping.
Malaysia
10 million
Malaysians who cast ballots in the 2013 general elections. Election officials claim that around 80 percent of registered voters went to the polls, a record turnout in the most closely contested general elections in Malaysian history.
Billboards featuring candidates in Malaysia’s general elections. Source: Sham Hardy’s flickr photostream, used under a creative commons license.
2.6 million
New voters in the general elections, according to BBC reporter Jennifer Pak. Both the ruling and opposition coalitions actively engaged the Malaysian electorate through online websites and social media to garner votes.
< 47%
Percentage of the popular vote won by the ruling Barisan Nasional, its worst electoral performance since it began ruling as a coaliton 56 years ago. It still won 60% of the seats in Parliament.
Cambodia
60%
Voter turnout rate in Cambodia’s 2012 commune council elections, down from 75 percent in the 2008 national elections. Many observers believe low turnout benefits the ruling Cambodian Peoples’ Party, which won 97 percent of contested seats last year.
1.5 million
Votes cast in the 2012 elections by individuals not included on voter registration lists, according to the Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia. The figure represents roughly 10 percent of Cambodia’s population of approximately 14 million people.
50%
Percentage of the 9 million registered voters in Cambodia that are under the age of 30. According to a recent International Republican Institute survey, 75 percent of respondents between the ages of 18 and 24 said they intend to cast a ballot in the upcoming national elections on July 28.
178
Number of women elected to commune council seats in the 2012 elections. Women hold 22 percent of commune council seats, up from 18 percent following the 2007 elections.
88%
Percentage of Cambodians who plan to go to the polls in the upcoming national elections, according to the International Republican Institute survey.
