Cambodia elections: New boss, same as the old boss?

Cambodia’s longtime leader Hun Sen emerged as the winner once again in the country’s recent general election, with his ruling Cambodian People’s Party winning 120 of the 125 seats in the country’s national assembly. 

But if the election result was hardly in doubt, there is some change in the air. 

Hun Sen, who has ruled Cambodia since the mid 1980s, has said he wants to pass his premiership on — though only as far as to his own son, Hun Manet. 

With that transition coming up later in August, this week we take a look at what it might mean for the South East Asian country. How much power will Hun Sen still hold? What do we know about Hun Manet? And what challenges lie ahead for the governance of Cambodia post-Covid, widely seen as the nation most tied to China in the region? 

To delve into these questions, our guest is Sophal Ear, associate professor at the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University and a long time commentator on Cambodian affairs.