Bangkok is electing its governor this Sunday, the first big ballot since the pro-democracy protests that shook Thailand in 2020 to demand reforms of the monarchy and society.
The last such election in the metropolis dates back to 2013. A year later, the army chief, Prayut Chan-O-Cha, seized power in the kingdom in a coup, ousted the governor and appointed one of his men in his place.
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The ballot, in one round, is a test for the putschist general, legitimized by controversial legislative elections in 2019 and unpopular with a youth eager for freedom.
He completes his mandate next March, so general elections must be held by then.
4.4 million Bangkokians are called to vote, including some 700,000 first-time voters who could vote in number for candidates opposed to the government.
A policy polarized around the army
During the campaign, the main contenders focused on the daily concerns of Bangkokians, promising to make the ultra-polluted and congested megalopolis of some 10 million inhabitants more pleasant to live in.
Many remain skeptical.
“
I am not enthusiastic about the elections.
They will hardly change the city
, ”reports to AFP Nat, 28, after having deposited his ballot in the ballot box.
Since the coups of 2006 and 2014, Thai politics has been polarized between pro- and anti-army parties.
The megalopolis is very different from most of the kingdom, poorer, more agricultural and less educated.
In 2020, major pro-democracy demonstrations shook the kingdom, with protesters demanding the resignation of the Prime Minister, the rewriting of the Constitution deemed too favorable to the army and an in-depth reform of the all-powerful monarchy, a taboo subject. until there.
The results of the gubernatorial election could fall on Sunday evening and will have to be ratified by the electoral commission.
