Cambodia's election monitors are concerned with low voter turnout, but they warned Thursday against abstention from voting.

"If you do not turn out, do not expect there to be a change," said Thun Saray, chairman of the board for the Committee for Free and Fair Elections, as a guest on "Hello VOA."

"If they want or do not want any party to lead the country they should vote, and also to punish any leader [or] politician who does not do well, they should turn out and vote," he said.

The 2007 commune elections saw the worst voter turnout in Cambodia's recent democratic history, about 68 percent.

Factors contributing to low voter turn-out include preoccupation with work, the inability to find one's name on voter lists, or confusion about voting ID.

Khmer Institute for Democracy Executive Director Hang Chaya told "VOA Khmer" that no matter the voter turnout or election results, the next government should concentrate on improving the economy and education.