PHNOM PENH, May 17 (Xinhua) -- The campaign for the fourth provincial, municipal, town, and district council elections in Cambodia kicked off on Friday, with the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) holding a large rally.
Prach Chan, president of the National Election Committee (NEC), said the campaign will last eight days, ending two days before the May 26 elections.
Five political parties are standing in the elections: the ruling CPP, the Khmer Will Party, the Nation Power Party, the Funcinpec Party, and the Khmer National United Party, he added.
The CPP said roughly 10,000 of its supporters rallied and paraded through streets in Phnom Penh on Friday to campaign for the elections.
In a message to mark the start of the campaign, CPP's President Samdech Techo Hun Sen expressed his profound gratitude to the people for trusting and supporting the CPP and him in all circumstances.
He said the CPP will "strictly abide by the laws, regulations, procedures, and ethics of the elections and respect the election results."
Hun Sen added that the party will cooperate with all parties concerned to maintain a good political atmosphere in order to ensure a free and fair election.
Held once every five years, the non-universal poll is cast by only 11,622 sitting commune councilors, typically along party lines, for 4,200 provincial, municipal, town, and district councilors.
In the last election in 2019, the CPP won nearly all of the provincial, municipal, town, and district council seats. ■