The legislative elections in Thailand will be held in May, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha, candidate for re-election and who plans to dissolve Parliament "
in March
" as the press has been talking about for several weeks, confirmed on Tuesday.
“
I am going to dissolve Parliament (…) I said March, so it will be in March
”, shortly before the end of the mandate of the deputies on March 23, the leader told journalists after a government meeting.
The ballot is expected "
in May
", he continued, without providing further details.
Rebellion
According to the Constitution, elections must be held between 45 and 60 days after the dissolution of the lower house.
Sunday, May 7 would be the most likely date, say observers.
Came to power following a coup in 2014, then legitimized five years later by controversial legislative elections, former General Prayut (68) is seeking a second consecutive term.
In early January, he sealed his rallying to a new party, Ruam Thai Srang Chart, or United Thai Nation Party, during a rally of several thousand people in Bangkok.
The campaign began unofficially in the kingdom where election posters dot the streets.
Prayut's declining popularity, tarnished by the difficult recovery of the economy after the pandemic, feeds the hopes of his opponents, starting with Pheu Thai, the main opposition party which has begun to mobilize support in his stronghold of Northeast.
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Pheu Thai is expected to announce among its candidates for the post of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra (36), the daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, overthrown by the army in 2006 after five years in power.
This billionaire, who lives in exile in Dubai to escape a conviction for corruption, continues to animate Thai political life.
Even though Pheu Thai, leading the polls, won a majority of the lower house's 500 seats, the kingdom's constitution gives military-backed candidates an advantage, as the 250 government-appointed senators also vote to appoint the head of government.