Cambodia votes as Hun Sen near-guaranteed election win

The 70-year-old former Khmer Rouge cadre has ruled since 1985 and faces no real contest in this vote, with opposition parties banned, challenger candidates forced to flee and freedom of expression stifled.

Hun Sen cast his ballot in the capital Phnom Penh shortly after polling stations opened at 7am , according to AFP journalists at the scene. The veteran prime minister has begun to look to the future, saying that he would hand over to his son, four-star general Hun Manet - possibly even in the coming weeks.

The only real challenge to Hun Sen's CPP had come from the Candlelight Party . But in May, the country's electoral body refused to register it, rendering it ineligible to compete. Speaking before the vote, the CP told AFP that the registration decision meant that there was no way the election could be either free or fair.Ahead of the election, freedom of speech has been heavily stifled, with one of the few remaining independent news outlets, Voice of Democracy, shut down earlier this year.

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