Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Thailand is Cambodia's neighbor to the West, and this forum is dedicated to Thai news, stories, reviews, blogs, videos, Thai people and anything else related to the country. A lot of expats have both lived and worked in Cambodia and Thailand, and this area is a place to discuss all aspects of life in Thailand and what's going on there. Most topics are about Bangkok and Pattaya because of their larger populations of expatriates and tourists in those cities, but this is for all things Thai.
User avatar
phuketrichard
Expatriate
Posts: 16792
Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 5:17 pm
Reputation: 5733
Location: Atlantis
Aruba

Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by phuketrichard »

Image

although she is running, no doubt who will pull the strings>

Except for his war on drugs, thailand (for an expat), was not so bad under Thaksins rule

BUT if she wins, say good bye to smoking weed ;-(


Voting has begun in Thailand's general election, where the daughter of ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is the frontrunner.
The election is being described as a turning point for a country that has experienced a dozen military coups in its recent history.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the army general who led the last coup in 2014, is seeking another term.

But, he is facing a strong challenge from two anti-military parties.

Voting on Sunday began at 8:00 am (01:00 GMT) at the 95,000 polling station across the country.

Around 50 million people will cast their ballots to elect 500 members of the lower house of parliament - and around two million people have voted early.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-655 ... n=BBCWorld
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
User avatar
phuketrichard
Expatriate
Posts: 16792
Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 5:17 pm
Reputation: 5733
Location: Atlantis
Aruba

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by phuketrichard »

In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
User avatar
armchairlawyer
Expatriate
Posts: 2490
Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2015 1:43 pm
Reputation: 1503
Cambodia

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by armchairlawyer »

The Army has already denied they will launch a coup.
User avatar
Alex
Expatriate
Posts: 2594
Joined: Thu May 15, 2014 2:09 am
Reputation: 2299
Location: Bangkok
United States of America

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by Alex »

armchairlawyer wrote: Sun May 14, 2023 8:09 pm The Army has already denied they will launch a coup.
They did the same hours before the 2014 coup. Then circumstances changed 555.
User avatar
CEOCambodiaNews
Expatriate
Posts: 62322
Joined: Sun Oct 12, 2014 5:13 am
Reputation: 4033
Location: CEO Newsroom in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Contact:
Cambodia

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

CEO News posted this from the BBC at 01:40, Monday 14 May 2023.

Thailand elections: Vote counting shows Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner
Published 3 hours ago
By Jonathan Head
South East Asia correspondent
Voting has closed in Thailand's general election, where the daughter of ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is the frontrunner.

The election is being described as a turning point for a country that has experienced a dozen military coups in its recent history.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the army general who led the last coup in 2014, is seeking another term.

But, he is facing a strong challenge from two anti-military parties.

Vote counting got under way after polls closed at 17:00 (10:00 GMT) on Sunday - voting began at 8:00 am (01:00 GMT) at the 95,000 polling stations across the country.

About 50 million people were expected to cast their ballots to elect 500 members of the lower house of parliament - and some two million people had voted early.

A preliminary vote count showed the Pheu Thai Party (For Thais) was ahead with 6.45% of eligible votes, followed by another opposition party Move Forward.

Leading the race is Pheu Thai, led by Mr Thaksin's daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

The 36-year-old is harnessing her father's wide patronage network while sticking to the populist message that has resonated with rural, low-income regions of the country.

Mr Thaksin, a telecommunications billionaire, is loved by many lower-income Thais, but is deeply unpopular with the royalist elite. He was ousted in a military coup in 2006, when his opponents accused him of corruption. He has denied the allegations and has since been living in exile since 2008 in London and Dubai.

"I think after eight years, the people want better politics, better solutions for the country than just coups d'etat," Ms Paetongtarn told the BBC in a recent interview.

Move Forward, led by Pita Limjaroenrat, a 42-year-old former tech executive, has also been rising fast in opinion polls. Its young, progressive and ambitious candidates have been campaigning on a simple but powerful message: Thailand needs to change.

"And the change is really not about having another coup. Because that's a change backwards. It's about reforming the military, the monarchy, for a democratic future, with better economic performance," says Thitinan Pongsudhirak, from the Institute of Security and International Studies at Chulalongkorn University.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-65567781
Join the Cambodia Expats Online Telegram Channel: https://t.me/CambodiaExpatsOnline

Cambodia Expats Online: Bringing you breaking news from Cambodia before you read it anywhere else!

Have a story or an anonymous news tip for CEO? Need advertising? CONTACT US

Cambodia Expats Online is the most popular community in the country. JOIN TODAY

Follow CEO on social media:

Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Instagram
User avatar
phuketrichard
Expatriate
Posts: 16792
Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 5:17 pm
Reputation: 5733
Location: Atlantis
Aruba

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by phuketrichard »

seems the youth of Thailand is fed up!! lets hope things stay clam and the army accepts defeat:

Early returns show opposition parties are poised for victory in Thai elections
Thailand's opposition secured a stunning election outcome on Sunday after trouncing parties allied with the military, setting the stage for a flurry of deal-making over the formation of a coalition government in a bid to end nearly a decade of conservative, army-backed rule.

The liberal Move Forward party and the populist Pheu Thai Party were far out in front, with 99 per cent of votes counted, but it was far from certain that either would form the next government, with parliamentary rules written by the military after its 2014 coup skewed in its favour.

To rule, the opposition parties will need to strike deals and muster support from multiple camps, including members of a junta-appointed Senate that has sided with military parties and gets to vote on who becomes prime minister and form the next administration.

Sunday's election was the latest bout in a long-running battle for power between Pheu Thai, the populist juggernaut of the billionaire Shinawatra family, and a nexus of old money conservatives, and military with influence over key institutions at the heart of two decades of turmoil.

Move Forward had 113 constituency seats and 38 party-list seats,
to Pheu Thai's 112 and 29 respectively
According to a Reuters calculation, both were set to win more than triple the number of seats of Palang Pracharat, the political vehicle of the junta, and the army-backed United Thai Nation party.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-15/ ... /102345426

Pita Limjaroenrat is a charismatic young Harvard grad who wants to be Thailand's next PM
Image
Professor Siripan Nogsuan Sawasdee from the Faculty of Political Science at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University said Move Forward's popularity had been "increasing every day".

"My calculation is that about 60-70 per cent of the younger generation would prefer the Move Forward," Professor Siripan told the ABC.

"And older generations are being persuaded by their sons and daughters and nieces and nephews to vote for Move Forward as well."
The party's main policies aim to demilitarise, decentralise, and de-monopolise Thailand.

It also wants to reform the royal defamation law, end mandatory military conscription, and hold a referendum to prevent any future military dictatorships.

Professor Siripan said she believed the party's growing popularity came down to clear policies that went against military-backed parties, a willingness to shake up the system, and a likeable leader.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-12/ ... /102318312

so a collation government between Pheu Thai & Move forward party with Thaksin in the background

BUT::
The opposition's strong showing doesn't guarantee a path to power
Though no major problems were reported during today's voting, Human Rights Watch has called the elections "fundamentally flawed," occurring within the framework of a 2017 constitution written by a commission appointed by the military following its 2014 coup.

That means a royalist, military-backed government could still return to power if they retain the backing of the 250-member, military appointed Senate. The prime minister is chosen by a simple majority of a vote by the house and the senate, meaning the royalist, military establishment could return to power with just 126 House seats.
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
User avatar
Doc67
Expatriate
Posts: 8870
Joined: Thu Nov 16, 2017 9:16 am
Reputation: 8148
Location: PHNOM PENH
Great Britain

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by Doc67 »

phuketrichard wrote: Mon May 15, 2023 6:43 am seems the youth of Thailand is fed up!! lets hope things stay clam and the army accepts defeat:

Early returns show opposition parties are poised for victory in Thai elections
Thailand's opposition secured a stunning election outcome on Sunday after trouncing parties allied with the military, setting the stage for a flurry of deal-making over the formation of a coalition government in a bid to end nearly a decade of conservative, army-backed rule.

The liberal Move Forward party and the populist Pheu Thai Party were far out in front, with 99 per cent of votes counted, but it was far from certain that either would form the next government, with parliamentary rules written by the military after its 2014 coup skewed in its favour.

To rule, the opposition parties will need to strike deals and muster support from multiple camps, including members of a junta-appointed Senate that has sided with military parties and gets to vote on who becomes prime minister and form the next administration.

Sunday's election was the latest bout in a long-running battle for power between Pheu Thai, the populist juggernaut of the billionaire Shinawatra family, and a nexus of old money conservatives, and military with influence over key institutions at the heart of two decades of turmoil.

Move Forward had 113 constituency seats and 38 party-list seats,
to Pheu Thai's 112 and 29 respectively
According to a Reuters calculation, both were set to win more than triple the number of seats of Palang Pracharat, the political vehicle of the junta, and the army-backed United Thai Nation party.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-15/ ... /102345426

Pita Limjaroenrat is a charismatic young Harvard grad who wants to be Thailand's next PM
Image
Professor Siripan Nogsuan Sawasdee from the Faculty of Political Science at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University said Move Forward's popularity had been "increasing every day".

"My calculation is that about 60-70 per cent of the younger generation would prefer the Move Forward," Professor Siripan told the ABC.

"And older generations are being persuaded by their sons and daughters and nieces and nephews to vote for Move Forward as well."
The party's main policies aim to demilitarise, decentralise, and de-monopolise Thailand.

It also wants to reform the royal defamation law, end mandatory military conscription, and hold a referendum to prevent any future military dictatorships.

Professor Siripan said she believed the party's growing popularity came down to clear policies that went against military-backed parties, a willingness to shake up the system, and a likeable leader.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-12/ ... /102318312

so a collation government between Pheu Thai & Move forward party with Thaksin in the background

BUT::
The opposition's strong showing doesn't guarantee a path to power
Though no major problems were reported during today's voting, Human Rights Watch has called the elections "fundamentally flawed," occurring within the framework of a 2017 constitution written by a commission appointed by the military following its 2014 coup.

That means a royalist, military-backed government could still return to power if they retain the backing of the 250-member, military appointed Senate. The prime minister is chosen by a simple majority of a vote by the house and the senate, meaning the royalist, military establishment could return to power with just 126 House seats.
What's your prediction if the Royalist / military establishment do vote for their guy and retain power?

Will this light the touchpaper for full-scale revolt?
User avatar
phuketrichard
Expatriate
Posts: 16792
Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 5:17 pm
Reputation: 5733
Location: Atlantis
Aruba

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by phuketrichard »

I have none, been surprised to many times over the past 35 years:

In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
User avatar
phuketrichard
Expatriate
Posts: 16792
Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 5:17 pm
Reputation: 5733
Location: Atlantis
Aruba

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by phuketrichard »

they swept Bangkok
Image

Image

I hope so:
Image
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
User avatar
phuketrichard
Expatriate
Posts: 16792
Joined: Wed May 14, 2014 5:17 pm
Reputation: 5733
Location: Atlantis
Aruba

Re: Thailand elections: Polls open with Thaksin's daughter as frontrunner

Post by phuketrichard »

that was quick:

REAKING: Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat announces the formation of a coalition with Pheu Thai Party with 308 MPs. Pita said he had spoken to Pheu Thai PM candidate Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

Three small parties will also be part of the coalition of 308 MPs. They are: Prachachat, Thai Sang Thai and Liberal Thai Party,

Image
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
Post Reply Previous topicNext topic
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot] and 191 guests