election
- Thailand Election News
Nine arrested for sharing ‘fake election news’
PHOTO: Thai News Agency A Thai official has announced that nine people have been arrested for allegedly sharing fake news on Facebook. In the posts they claimed two EC commissioners had been fired and that 600,000 illegitimate ballots were mixed into the vote count. If convicted, the accused could face up to five years in jail and a 30,000 baht…
- Thailand Election News
Count continues amid surging complaints
Four days after the national election and we are still no closer to knowing the ‘winner’ as the county’s Election Commission continues the counting of the remainder of the votes amid accusations of delays and mishandling of ballots in some locations. 95% of the voting has now been completed. The EC says that the results after counting the remaining 5%…
- Thailand Election News
Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam disses Pheu Thai ‘coalition’
“The final seat tally is subject to change since the commission has only announced 95 per cent of the voting results.” Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam has called Wednesday’s announcement of a Pheu Thai-led coalition preparing to form a government merely psychological strategy that will not bear fruit. “The truth will be known after May 9 when the Election Commission endorses…
- Thailand Election News
Anti-Junta bloc announces coalition with at least 255 seats
by Kas Chanwanpen The Pheu Thai Party’s de facto leader Sudarat Keyuraphan has announced this morning that an ‘anti-junta’ bloc had mustered at least 255 MPs from seven parties to form a coalition government. She said their shared aim was to stop the military junta from retaining power. She also said that negotiations are still underway for more parties to…
- Thailand Election News
Six parties poised to announce coalition government at 10am
Six pro-democracy parties, led by Pheu Thai, are announcing their intention to form a coalition government this morning. The number-crunchers say, even without the support of BumJaiThai and the Democrats, they have 252 house seats to form a majority government (they need at least 251 seats in the 500 seat parliament). The parties siding with Pheu Thai to form the…
- Thailand Election News
EC urged to clear public doubt, announce results immediately
by Pratch Rujivanarom Facing a major public outcry over suspicious election processes and problematic vote counting, the Election Commission has been warned by both international and local election observers to promptly resolve all public doubts and prevent the escalation of political problems and conflicts. During the release of an interim report by Asian Network for Free Election (ANFREL) in Bangkok…
- Thailand Election News
Parties race to cobble together a working coalition
Day Two following the election and the only thing that is clear is that nothing is clear at this stage. Pheu Thai and Phalang Pracharat are both claiming the right to form a government with support of like-minded parties. The two rival parties, the pro-democracy Pheu Thai and the pro-Junta Phalang Pracharat, are locked in a close battle to form…
- Northern Thailand News
Thaksin: Election rigged with many irregularities
Former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra told Agence France-Presse yesterday that Thailand’s election was marred by “irregularities” and “rigged”. He says the military rigged the election system to retain their political grip on the kingdom. “Everyone knows in Thailand, everyone international that observed the election in Thailand, knows that(there is irregularities,” he told AFP in English. “What we call, we should call,…
- Thailand Election News
Police checking 50, mostly, minor violations post election day
Police around Thailand are prosecuting 50 alleged violations of election laws and continue to monitor the post-poll situation for further signs of potential trouble. The Royal Thai Police say they’re on alert for ‘ill-intentioned groups’ fomenting post-election chaos, national police deputy spokesman Colonel Krissana Pattanacharoen said this morning. The 50 cases under investigation include buying votes, deliberate destruction of ballots…
- Thailand Election News
UPDATE: Latest poll results, Monday 11am
RESULTS: Election Commission Updated poll results as of 11am this morning. The latest votes reveal some changes in the total seats each party has now won. There are also some changes to the wins of the small parties. Pheu Thai continues to pull ahead, Future Forward continues its very impressive showing as a brand new party and the Democrats, with their…
- Thailand Election News
Thai poll results, for newbies
PHOTO: France 24 The numbers are still being counted but the trends are now quite defined so that any changes are unlikely to affect the final result. According to popular vote figures from the Election Commission, with 93% of the total votes counted, Palang Pracharat garnered the most votes with 7.5 million, with Pheu Thai following at 7.3 million. But…
- Thailand Election News
UPDATE: Election results – what it all means
The Election Commission says the official results of the Thai general election will be announced today. By the close of counting last night around 92% of the votes had been counted. The bleary-eyed commission decided to delay the announcement until this afternoon. The EC chairman says the announcement of winners in each constituency had to be deferred because expat’ votes…
- Thailand Election News
Reports of vote tampering will be investigated by police
A leading international polling monitoring organisation claims it’s not confident there wasn’t any tampering in yesterday’s election at polling booths. The vice president of People’s Election Network listed a number of election irregularities reported by some of their volunteer observer network raising doubts about the Election Commission’s efficiency. They say they had 600 observers out amongst polling booths throughout the…
- Thailand Election News
Counting continues today. Phalang Pracharat and Pheu Thai lead the way.
Pheu Thai and Phalang Pracharat were running neck-and-neck last night as ballots were counted around the country. The major parties swapped poll position as the night went on. As of 10.30pm, with 92 per cent of the votes counted, the pro-junta Phalang Pracharat appeared to have beaten Pheu Thai with a total of 147 seats – 92 constituency MPs and…
- Thailand Election News
Exit poll says Pheu Thai will get most votes but not a majority
The polls are closed, the ballot boxes secured and the counting starts. Time now for the fancy TV graphics and speculation as Thailand’s next government takes shape in the next 24-48 hours. No party is expected to win a majority of the seats so a coalition will need to be formed. That’s where the fun will start. Pheu Thai is…
- Thailand Election News
Ban on alcohol for 24 hours, starts today at 6pm
Thais go to the polls tomorrow (Sunday) for the first time since 2011, which also means there will be a 24 hour alcohol ban this weekend, starting this evening. Alcohol sales and distribution will be forbidden from 6pm on Saturday to 6pm on Sunday. Officials say weddings, parties and other celebrations can still be organised for these dates but there…
- Thailand Election News
Everything you need to know about tomorrow’s vote
by Kanjana Lao, Nation Graphics Seven million new eligible voters will impact the outcome of tomorrow’s election, the first since 2011. The many new young voters, and the new election system, means that an outcome is very difficult to predict. But here’s Thai Election 2019 1.01 for newbies, thanks to The Nation.
- Thailand Election News
Deputy PM promises ‘no coup’ after the election
Thailand’s Deputy PM General Prawit Wongsuwan is hosing down speculation that there could be another coup after the March 24 general election if the votes don’t support the pro-military parties. Responding to questions about his role in maintaining peace and order around this Sunday’s election, General Prawit says there is “nothing to worry about”, including the situation in the three southernmost provinces of Yala,…
- Thailand Election News
Voters like Prayut as PM but prefer Pheu Thai as the party they will vote for
With the election campaign now digging into its first week on the hustings, the polls are starting to indicate where the early poll sentiments are leaning. Thai PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha is the favourite for the prime minster’s position following the election, but Pheu Thai is the party people want to see lead the formation of the new government, according…
- Thailand Election News
Constitutional Court meets today to rule on future of Thai Raksa Chart
PHOTO: Thai Raksa Chart party leader Preechaphol Pongpanit awaits the decision of the Constitutional Court today whether to proceed with the case to disband the party The Constitutional Court is meeting today to decide whether or not to consider the request of the Election Commission to have the Thai Raksa Chart Party dissolved for breaching the political parties act. The…
- Thailand Election News
EC meets tomorrow to discuss Thai Raksa Chart’s controversial PM nomination
The Election Commission is expected to meet tomorrow (Monday) to deliberate the Thai Raksa Chart party’s future following their nomination of Princess Ubolratana as a prime ministerial candidate in the March 24 election. But the EC’s secretary-general, Jarungvith Phumma, has declined to comment on the matter when asked about the party’s surprise Friday PM candidate, saying only that “all issues would…
- Thailand Election News
Election 2019: A challenge to the Princess’ nomination
PHOTO: The announcement this morning by the Thai Raksa Chart Party threw a political bombshell into the campaign – The Nation A leader of the People’s Reform Party has put in an urgent request for the Election Commission to rule whether the nomination of His Majesty the King’s eldest sister as a candidate for prime minister in the forthcoming election…
- Thailand Election News
“Compassion for the people” Thai Raksa Chart of Princess Ubolratana
The sister of Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn is now seen as a leading prime ministerial candidate for a political party loyal to fugitive former PM Thaksin Shinawatra in the March 24 elections. The Thai Raksa Chart party dropped the political bombshell this morning. 67 year old Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya Sirivadhana Varnavadi broke a long-standing tradition of Thai royalty staying out of…
- Thailand Election News
Princess Ubolratana running for the March 24 Thai election
The Thai Raksa Chart Party has thrown Thai politics into chaos after it nominated Princess Ubolratana Mahidol as its candidate as prime minister. The princess is His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s elder sister. Thai Raksa Chart Party nominated Princess Ubolratana as its candidate to be prime minister this morning. Today is the final day for political parties to announce candidates and…
- Thailand News
Prayut says he’s still waiting for an invitation to join a party for the election
Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says he won’t be reshuffling his cabinet following the resignations of four ministers who are core members of the pro-junta Palang Pracharat party. And he declared that he will seek to return to power only through election. He also openly ruled out the possibility of exploiting the provisional clauses in the Constitution to be re-appointed PM…
- Thailand News
Palang Pracharat to nominate Prayut as candidate for PM after election
The pro-junta leaning Palang Pracharat Party is poised to name Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha as its candidate for PM if it can win a majority at the March 24 general election. This revelation from a Palang Pracharat party source as reported by The Nation. The current junta government’s Industry Minister Uttama Savanayana and Deputy PM Somkid Jatusripitak are also likely to…
- Thailand News
March 24 election campaign starts with a whimper – Thai election 2019
If you were expecting Wednesday’s announcement of the forthcoming election to spark an outbreak of election posters, billboards and a stream of online campaigning, you’ll be disappointed. Stringent rules governing campaigning for the March 24 general election appear to be restricting freedom of expression as well as voters’ rights to information, according to academics on the matter. Wednesday’s Royal Decree…
- Thailand News
“March 24, most appropriate date for election” – Election Commission
PHOTO: Election Commissioner Ittiporn Boonpracong The Election Commission finally announced a date for the long-awaited election. The poll will be held on March 24, but the EC did not indicate if the official results will be declared before May 9. The situation raises potential legal concerns with the timeframe set by the Constitution. Hours after the Royal Decree on the…
- Thailand News
Here we go – Royal decree issued for Thai general election
The final hurdle to holding an election this year was cleared this morning by royal decree that sets in motion the countdown to the long-awaited poll. The royal decree, ordering a general election of members of Parliament was issued this morning. The constitutional process calls for the Election Commission to announce a date for the long-awaited election within five days…
- Thailand News
Why Thailand’s election will be a win for the military – International coverage
“When Thailand officials hinted that scheduled elections to end military rule would be postponed for the fifth time in almost as many years, anger and frustration rippled through the country.” The story of Thailand’s election stumbles and rumbles is making headlines around the world, especially since the February 24 election date, mooted as THE date for most of 2018, has…
- Thailand News
Pick a date, any date – Thai election
February 24, then March 10, then ‘sometime before May 7’, now March 24. The only thing we can be reasonably sure about is that it will be on a Sunday (Thai elections are always held on Sundays). Yesterday, Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam hinted that the election could now be held on March 24. He painted March 24 as the “most…
- Thailand News
Election 2019: Put it in your calendar – March 10
PHOTO: Protesters in Bangkok demanding the Thai Government announce election dates Bets are on for a March 10 election date as the Prime Minister has, for the first time, admitted that the election can no longer be held on February 24. But nothing official has yet been announced. Under the constitution, the general election must be completed within 150 days…
- Thailand News
PM Prayut kicks the election can down the road
PHOTO: The Nation February 24? No. March? April? Maybe May? PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has reaffirmed today that election will definitely be held by May 9 but gave no indication when exactly it will take place. It’s the first time he’s ever uttered an actual date. He says that under the new Thai Constitution, May 9 is the final date election…
- Thailand News
Army chief claims election delay critics are “bent on creating trouble”
In a country where the Army has played such a prominent part in the politics of Thailand for so long, we shouldn’t be surprised by commentary today from the Thai Army Commander-in-Chief. General Apirat Kongsompong says that those campaigning against the election delay have a “one-track mind and bent on creating troubles”. “They are being told to think this way,…
- Thailand News
Social media the key in the run up to the 2019 election
“Newspapers, once the beneficiary of political advertising, will now be side-lined in favor of targeted social media in the lead up to this year’s election.” by Asina Pownwasin Your social media platforms are about to be filled with banter, arguments and lots of advertising. The topic? The forthcoming Thai election (when a date is eventually announced). For the first time…
- Thailand News
Thai Interior Affairs ministry confirms memo ‘halting election preparations’ is genuine
PHOTO: South China Morning Post A leaked memo on social media, addressed to election officials in every province, to halt election preparations has now been confirmed to be genuine by the interior affairs Minister. The internal memo called for “all preparations for election are hereby halted” in absence of the Royal Decree, which was expected around New Year’s Day, but…
- Thailand News
NLA President urges critics not to blame Coronation for election delays
The country’s NLA President Pornpetch Wichitworachai is warning critics to refrain from blaming the forthcoming King’s coronation ceremony for causing potential delays in the national election. He says that authorities concerned with planning the election must choose appropriate timing for the election and ensure that it doesn’t affect the auspicious ceremony. “The ceremony would bring joy and happiness to the…
