PHNOM PENH, May 14 (Xinhua) -- Twenty political parties have so far registered to contest in Cambodia's upcoming general election, up from eight in the last election five years ago, National Election Committee (NEC) spokesman Dim Sovannarom said Monday, as the 15-day party registration period came to an end.

"Twenty political parties have registered with the NEC to contest in the July election, and four of them have been officially recognized," the spokesman said in a press conference.

The four recognized parties are the ruling Cambodian People's Party (CPP) of Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, the Cambodian Youth Party, the Cambodian Nationality Party, and the Khmer National United party, he said.

Sovannarom said the NEC will take another seven days to decide whether it officially recognizes the other 16 political parties, including the royalist Funcinpec Party of Prince Norodom Ranariddh.

"If these political parties meet the requirements determined by law, they will be officially recognized," he said.

The Southeast Asian nation is scheduled to hold a general election for the 125-seat parliament on July 29, and some 8.3 million Cambodians are eligible to cast their ballots, he said.

According to the Ministry of Interior's latest report, there are 41 groups registered as political parties in Cambodia.