ABSTRACT
The Cambodian elections of July 1998 sparked controversy over the issue of “freeness”, “fairness”, and “credibility”. For some, it marked a new beginning in Cambodian politics: the country successfully managed to organize elections without foreign intervention, as had happened in 1993. For others, the rule of law has not prevailed over the rule of thumb. The electoral game has worked to the ruling party's advantage. Although the elections took place, the future of liberal demo- cracy in Cambodia remains precarious. Among the major obstacles to democratic maturation are ideological conflict between the major contending parties, anti-democratic cultural values, and asymmetrical power relations among the political factions. With the Cambodian People's Party dominating the state's power structure, the politics of accommodation is unlikely to prevail.
