Asia This Week: August 26, 2022

August 26, 2022

A weekly review of key news and analysis of elections in Asia and the Indo-Pacific, usually posted on Fridays and occasionally updated throughout the week.

Parliament building in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Photo credit: Wikimedia/Brian Ireland (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Upcoming Asia/Pacific Elections

Nepal General and Provincial Elections: November 20, 2022

Purushottam Poudel, Kathmandu Post (August 29, 2022): Parties are fighting upcoming elections on usual planks: Congress will harp on democracy, UML will continue with ultranationalism, Maoists promise to shore up constitution, and Madhesh parties will press for constitution amendment.

Samik Kharel, Global Voices (August 29, 2022): Towards digital authoritarianism in Nepal: Surveillance, data collection, and online repression

Taiwan Local Elections: November 26, 2022

NHK (August 29, 2022): Taiwan starts accepting candidacies for local elections

Reuters (August 26, 2022): U.S. senator arrives in Taiwan, defying angry Beijing

Fiji Parliamentary Elections: November 2022 (due)

Stewart Firth, Australian Institute of International Affairs (August 24, 2022): What to Watch in the 2022 Fiji General Election

Thailand General Elections: By March 23, 2023 (earlier elections possible)

Kocha Olarn and Kathleen Magramo, CNN (August 25, 2022): Thailand has suspended its prime minister. What happens next?

David Rising and Grant Peck, AP (August 25, 2022): Political uncertainty in Thailand with PM’s suspension

Reuters (August 25, 2022): Explainer-How a Thai court suspended Prime Minister Prayuth

Tassanee Vejpongsa, AP (August 23, 2022): Thai protesters say PM reaches term limit, must step down: Protesters in Thailand have called for Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha to step down, saying he has exceeded his constitutional term limit

Malaysia General Elections and State Elections: May 2023 (due – general elections likely to be called earlier)

Amir Yusof, Channel News Asia (August 28, 2022): Malaysia’s key political parties hold meetings amid signs of imminent general election

Rozanna Latiff and A. Ananthalakshmi, Reuters (August 25, 2022): Malaysia’s Mahathir says ‘highly likely’ jailed Najib will get royal pardon

Niluksi Koswanage, Philip Heijmans, and Ravil Shirodkar, Bloomberg (August 24, 2022): Even From Jail, Najib Will Remain a Kingmaker in Malaysia

AP (August 23, 2022): Malaysia top court upholds ex-Prime Minister Najib’s graft conviction

Cambodia Parliamentary Elections: July 30, 2023 (due)

Sebastian Strangio, The Diplomat (August 24, 2022): Cambodia Readies Third Mass Trial of Opposition Officials: As the country heads toward national elections next year, the government is seeking to neutralize the influence of opposition leaders living in exile abroad.

Bangladesh General Elections: December 2023 (due)

The Daily Star Bangladesh (August 29, 2022): Hope EVM can help ensure free, fair, participatory elections: Japanese ambassador

Shafi Md Mostofa, The Diplomat (August 24, 2022): Bangladesh Parties Turn to Political Opportunism as Elections Draw Close: With Islamists displaying support for secular celebrations and secular parties burnishing their Islamist credentials, is Bangladesh heading toward political syncretism or hybridization?

Past Asia/Pacific Elections

Papua New Guinea General Elections: July 4-22, 2022

Tara Subramaniam, CNN (August 26 ,2022): Sleep, talk about coffee, wake up, talk about coffee: Papua New Guinea has a brand new minister job

Stephen Howes, East Asia Forum (August 23, 2022): Marape’s economic challenges this term around

Catherine Wilson, World Politics Review (August 19, 2022): A Messy Election Highlights Papua New Guinea’s Governance Challenges

Terrence Wood, DevPolicyBlog (August 19, 2022): What went wrong with the 2022 elections in PNG?

Philippines General Elections (Presidential, Legislative, and Local): May 9, 2022

Clara Ferreira Marques, Bloomberg (August 28, 2022): Marcos Brings Myth-Making to the Silver Screen: Months after the son of dictator Ferdinand Marcos was elected president in the Philippines, a hit film helps the family gloss over the brutality and corruption of the regime.

South Korea Local Elections: June 1, 2022, following Presidential Election: March 9, 2022

AP (August 28, 2022): Outspoken Lawmaker Picked to Lead South Korean Opposition

Japan House of Councillors Elections: July 10, 2022 (half of upper house)

Kyodo (August 26, 2022): Japan’s main opposition revamps executive lineup after July election defeat

Justin McCurry, The Guardian (August 23, 2022): Japan PM’s popularity dives over party links to Unification church

Macau Legislative Elections: September 12, 2021

Chen Zifei, Radio Free Asia (August 24, 2022): Macau to broaden reach of national security law in response to Pelosi’s Taiwan trip: The amendments could result in the loss of dissenting voices and put political pressure on the city’s NGOs.

Asia/Pacific Elections Coming Up in 2022 and 2023

Japan, Gubernatorial Election in Okinawa: September 11, 2022

Nauru Parliamentary Elections: Between September 24 and October 26, 2022 (due – exact date not set yet)

New Zealand Local Elections: October 8, 2022

Australia, Tasmania Local Elections: October 25, 2022

Fiji Parliamentary Elections: November 2022 (due)

Taiwan Local Elections: November 26, 2022

India, State Elections in Himachal Pradesh: November 2022 (due)

Australia, South Australia Local Elections; November 11, 2022

Australia, Victoria State Elections: November 26, 2022

India, State Elections in Gujarat: December 2022 (due)

India, State Elections in Tripura, Meghalaya, and Nagaland: February 2023 (due)

Thailand General Elections: By March 23, 2023 (earlier elections possible)

Australia, New South Wales State Elections: March 25, 2023

Micronesia Parliamentary Elections: March 7, 2023

Malaysia General Elections and State Elections: May 2023 (due – general elections likely to be called earlier)

India, State Elections in Karnataka: May 2023 (due)

Cambodia Parliamentary Elections: July 30, 2023 (due)

Burma Parliamentary Elections: By August 2023 (proposed – tentative, post-coup)

Maldives Presidential Election: September 2023 (due)

Tuvalu General Elections: September 2023 (due)

Singapore Presidential Election: September 2023 (expected – largely ceremonial role)

New Zealand General Elections: October 2023 (expected – due by January 2024)

Bhutan Parliamentary Elections: October 2023 (due)

India, State Elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Mizoram: November 2023 (due)

Bangladesh Parliamentary Elections: December 2023 (due)

India, State Elections in Rajasthan and Telangana: December 2023 (due)

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