The election will be a dispute between the unpopular Prayut, who came to power in 2019 after a military coup, and the daughter of tycoon and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
The Prime Minister of thailandPrayut Chan-O-Cha Prayut Chan-O-Cha, dissolved this Monday, 20, the Parliament, and paved the way for parliamentary elections in May, probably on the 7th or 14th, according to the Thai press. The body responsible for overseeing the elections (EC) will announce the official date in the coming days. It is the second time that the elections will take place since the coup d’état in 2014. The election will be a dispute between the unpopular Prayut, who came to power in a military coup, and the daughter of tycoon and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the great enemy of the army, which remains politically active despite being in exile for over a decade. The election campaign began unofficially a few weeks ago in Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy. Prayut, 68, who was consolidated as head of government in 2019 after controversial elections, has been in power for a relatively long period for a country with several coups d’état in its history (a dozen since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932 ). Two months before the elections, Prayut, shaken by a mediocre economic record, faces the main opposition party, Pheu Thai, which has almost half of the voting intentions according to a poll released on Sunday (against 12% for Prayut’s party).
Pheu Tgaim leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 36, is the new face of the billionaire family whose opposition to the army has shaped the country’s political life for more than 20 years. Her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, was prime minister from 2001 to 2006 before being overthrown by the military. Her aunt Yingluck led the government from 2011 to 2014, until Prayut’s coup d’état. “I am very hopeful of forming a government,” she told the press on Friday. “We are campaigning to achieve a broad victory, because a broad victory will make us strong enough to form a government,” she added. The 2017 constitution, drafted by the military junta, forces Pheu Thai, which aspires to win 310 of the 500 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, to win an overwhelming majority to govern, which several analysts consider difficult.
Source: Jovempan
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