Thailand’s Pita falls short of a majority after parliament rejects election results
Only 13 senators (appointed by the military) voted for the prime ministerial candidate who won Thailand's elections. A new vote will be held next week. The Move Forward leader confirms that he plans to challenge the role of the military and the monarchy in the country, which might doom the party after the Constitutional Court accepts a petition that might lead to its dissolution.
Bangkok (AsiaNews) – Pita Limjaroenrat failed to win enough votes to become Thailand’s next prime minister, defeated by a large number of representatives who abstained and a majority of military-appointed senators who voted against him.
As the single candidate for the parties that won the general elections on 14 May, he got 324 votes, far short of the majority (376) needed in the National Assembly meeting today in joint session (500 representatives and 250 senators).
Together, the Move Forward (Phak Kao Klai) party, the Shinawatra clan’s For Thais (Pheu Thai) party, and the six other parties of the winning coalition hold only 311 seats in the 500-member lower house. The vote of 13 senators was not enough.
Thailand’s military drafted the country’s constitution and set up its National Assembly in order to end their direct rule, which they had imposed in a coup in May 2014, while at the same time ensuring their de facto control of the political system. The first post-coup parliamentary election was held in 2019.
In addition, the military have used censorship, pressure and the lèse-majesté law to crack down on dissent and opponents.
Yet, this was not enough to prevent the parties opposed to military power from taking control of the elected House of Representatives (unlike the Senate whose members are appointed by the Armed Forces) and potentially forming a new government.
However, the Election Commission yesterday filed a petition with the Constitutional Court asking for a ruling on Pita’s status as an elected official after allegations were made against him for electoral irregularities.
The court also received a second petition from an opponent of the winning pro-democracy coalition, demanding that Pita’s Move Forward party be dissolved.
In this case the party’s platform is the bone of contention since, as its young leader confirmed today, it includes plans to end the military’s stranglehold over the country and to review the monarchy’s role in its political life.
Pita’s defeat today is a blow to any hope for representative democracy in Thailand, a country whose instability, inequalities and corruption deeply affect the opportunities and rights of most of its 70 million citizens.
Now nothing is certain. A new vote on Pita's prime ministership is likely to be held next week as parliament is set to reconvene on 19 and 20 July.
Alternatively, the parties in the winning coalition might have second thoughts or tensions might rise as some voters might not easily accept that the popular will expressed at the ballot box could be so easily thwarted.
Already today groups of Move Forward supporters have rallied in public spaces to follow the vote in parliament.
At the same time, one might expect that the military and the civilian establishment that backs it will not give up their power, privileges and legitimacy without a fight.
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04/08/2023 15:19
15/05/2023 15:39
