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Asia elections

Asia elections
The latest news, analysis and videos on the elections in Thailand, Indonesia, India, Philippines, Australia and Japan.
Demonstrators hold placards during a protest against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, on February 18, 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE
Myanmar

Myanmar junta pledges to remove former civil servants from blacklists

After the military snatched power in a 2021 coup, tens of thousands of public workers left their posts in a surge of civil disobedience.

Thailand

Meet the PM candidates vying for leadership in Thailand

Malaysia

Will young Malaysians play a key role in next election through swing votes?

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Thailand

‘Critical point’: can Thailand election pave way for national reset?

With the economy struggling and corruption rife, Thai voters will look to the February 8 election as a chance to turn the country around.

Thailand’s prime minister and Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul (second from right) greets people at a market during an election campaign at Chinatown in Bangkok on January 20. Photo: AFP
Bangladesh

Not cricket? Political sticky wicket forces Bangladesh out of T20 World Cup

Bangladesh’s national election on February 12 has brought tensions among the South Asian neighbours to the forefront.

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Myanmar

‘What was the point?’: Myanmar’s loaded election brings win for junta allies

Disenfranchised citizens and migrants dismiss the election as a meaningless exercise designed solely to validate the military’s iron grip.

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Thailand

Thailand’s Pita hopes to rise again through reformist People’s Party successor

The former leader was blocked from leading government and banned from politics after his party stunned the ruling elite in 2023.

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Former party leader Pita Limjaroenrat speaks on stage during a People’s Party election campaign event in Bangkok on Sunday. Photo: EPA
South Korea

South Korea withdraws budget minister nominee after allegations

Conservative Lee Hye-hoon’s appointment was viewed as an attempt by President Lee Jae Myung to promote national unity with cross-party appointments.

Malaysia

Asian Angle | Malaysia’s PM term limits could backfire unless election cycles are set

To secure his legacy, Anwar Ibrahim must ensure his reform doesn’t accidentally encourage the very political instability he seeks to prevent.

Myanmar

Video | Can Myanmar’s elections bring an end to its civil war?

International observers and bodies have slammed the elections as a sham that is neither free nor fair.

Myanmar elections
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Malaysia

Malaysia’s Islamists preach ‘racial domination’ to woo young voters

They govern the north, dominate the opposition and claim to soon be the undisputed home of Malay nationalism. Is Putrajaya next for PAS?

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Supporters of the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) wave flags during a rally in Kedah in 2012. Photo: AFP
Japan

‘Unprecedented’: Japan’s 1-party era under threat as centrists unite

The new CDP-Komeito pact marks a ‘turning point’ in Japanese politics that could finally end the LDP’s decades-long grip, analysts say.

Bangladesh

Bangladeshi student leaders ousted Hasina. Now their political future is unsure

The party born of protests that toppled Sheikh Hasina now finds itself overshadowed by a resurgent Jamaat-e-Islami.

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Japan

Japan’s Takaichi rolls dice on snap poll, bets popularity can save scandal-hit LDP

The PM stakes her future on a February 8 vote, but one expert warns her support may not save a ruling party dogged by funding scandals.

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Sanae Takaichi, Japan’s prime minister, speaks during a press conference in Tokyo, Japan in December 2025. Photo: Reuters
Japan

‘Foreigner fatigue’: how xenophobia hijacked Japan’s national conversation

Record immigration and the ‘Trump factor’ fuelled a xenophobic election surge, but analysts say another political target is emerging.

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Foreign tourists pack Kiyomizuzaka in Kyoto. Japan has seen a surge in tourist arrivals in recent years. Photo: Kyodo
Singapore

Most Singaporeans not upbeat on future of next generation: survey

But the city state also ranks highest in trust among people with differences in society, tied with Saudi Arabia in the Edelman global report.

Thailand

Ruling Thai party vows to end Cambodia conflict, close scam hubs if it wins poll

Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Bhumjaithai’s second candidate after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, believes his party has popular support.

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India

Why India is losing ground over Bangladesh and Myanmar to regional rivals

Pakistan and China have been drawing closer to Bangladesh and Myanmar in areas such as defence and trade at India’s expense, analysts say.

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets then Bangladeshi leader Sheikh Hasina before a meeting in New Delhi on June 22, 2024. Photo: AP
Japan

Japan’s Takaichi faces uphill task in election as opposition unites

Takaichi’s LDP is expected to lose millions of votes as Komeito allies with the CDP after ending its coalition with the ruling party.

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Japan

Japan’s ‘love hotel’ mayor stages comeback, shattering political taboos

Akira Ogawa’s return suggests voters are finally judging women in Japanese politics by the same imperfect standards as men.

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Thailand

Money for babies, combat pay: Thailand’s poll turns into a cash splash contest

From US$2,000 for newborns to debt write-offs, Thai political parties are dangling a raft of handouts in a bid to woo voters on February 8.

Abhisit Vejjajiva, leader of Thailand’s Democrat Party, greets a woman and her baby during an election campaign event in Bangkok on Saturday. Photo: EPA
Myanmar

Myanmar’s pro-junta party wins Aung San Suu Kyi’s seat: ‘surprise no one’

The military-backed party claims to have won 90 per cent of the available seats so far in a poll activists have derided as ‘engineered’.

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A protester holds up a poster featuring Aung San Suu Kyi during a demonstration against the military coup on February 15, 2021. Photo: AFP
Nepal

Nepal’s ex-king voices concern after protests as supporters rally

Gyanendra Shah was deposed in 2008 in a democratic uprising after he suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament in 2005.

Bangladesh

India-Bangladesh talks over Ganges waters may turn murky over politics, UN pact

Bangladesh’s election, Hasina’s presence in India and Dhaka’s signing of the UN water convention could complicate the 1996 Ganges agreement.

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Japan

Japan’s Takaichi tipped for snap election gamble as poll ratings soar

The Japanese prime minister has won plaudits at home over her tough stance towards China, but inflation remains a major voter concern.

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Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi delivers a speech in Tokyo on Tuesday. Her approval rating has hovered around 68 per cent in the past few months, according to one poll. Photo: AFP
South Korea

South Korea’s conservatives attempt break from Yoon with martial law apology

Yoon Suk-yeol’s former ruling party has offered a belated mea culpa, but critics see the move as nothing more than a cynical election ploy.

A supporter of South Korea’s ex-president Yoon Suk-yeol attends a rally in Seoul last month marking the first anniversary of his short-lived declaration of martial law. Photo: AFP
Nepal

Nepal’s ex-PM questioned over protest crackdown which led to overthrow

Nepal’s former prime minister KP Sharma Oli had said he would not submit to questioning, accusing the investigation of lacking a ‘constitutional basis’.

Thailand

Thailand’s ‘orange wave’ is back. Can it finally end conservative rule?

The Senate can no longer pick the prime minister, opening a path to victory for the reformist People’s Party in the election on February 8.

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