Malaysian Bloggers Make Political Run

Bloggers in Malaysia are having an impact on the political process as the country prepares for elections next month.

Three well-known bloggers, who are opponents of the ruling party that has been in power for fifty years, are running for the first time as candidates on March 8, counting on their online popularity to bring in votes.

"Everyone of us has a stake in the country's future, but talk is cheap. We now need to walk the walk," said Jeff Ooi, a popular blogger who is running for a seat in northern Penang state for the opposition Democratic Action Party, Reuters reported. Ooi has become popular for writing a blog focused on politics called "

Tony Pua is another well-known

A third popular political

The politically focused Malaysian blogosphere is considered troublesome to the government for it sometimes critical political and social commentaries that are not inline with the rest of the mainstream media. The government said last year it could force bloggers to register with officials to reduce the spread of malicious content on the Web.