History in Thailand: After nearly a decade of military rule, the country's public clearly voted in favor of the country's democratic camp, with the candidates of the royal army suffering a series of defeats in their strongholds of support across the country.
The big winner of the election is the Moving Forward party, a liberal progressive party that until recently was considered extreme in its views in the conservative country. The party swept the capital Bangkok, where it managed to win all 33 constituencies. The party was also successful in former strongholds of military and royal supporters in the east of the country.
The Fu Thai Party, the party of exiled opposition figure Thaksin Shinawatra, also gained an increase in its power in the elections and announced this morning that it would participate in a coalition with the Moving Forward party. Party leader Pentogatran Shinawatra expressed support for the candidacy of Moving Forward party chairman Pita Limjaruaert for prime minister. Four other parties have announced that they will join this coalition and together they have a majority in the House of Representatives, but not enough to override the Senate's veto.
An elderly woman votes in Thailand's parliamentary elections,
The Thai Senate was appointed by the current prime minister, Prayut Chan-ocha, and is composed almost entirely of conservative candidates and supporters of the military and the royal family. Now there are fears in Thailand that the Senate will not confirm Limjeruenert as prime minister and the country will plunge into political chaos. "I'm not afraid, but I'm not complacent either. They will not dare to thwart the will of the voters," the leader of the Naim Kadima party told local media.
Limjeroenrat's party supports the abolition of legislation prohibiting criticism of the royal family under heavy penalties, and wants to abolish the monopolies established by the royal family and the military in the Thai economy in recent decades. However, the Pu Thai Party opposes the repeal of the laws and calls for a compromise, probably the abolition of heavy penalties, that would allow for more democratic discourse in Thailand.
Wrong? We'll fix it! If you find a mistake in the article, please share with us