The first polls after Thailand’s general election give victory to the opposition, but by a margin still insufficient to elect a prime minister, Europa Press news agency said.
Opposition parties Pheu Thai and Move Forward won about 270 of the 500 seats in the House of Representatives, enough for a majority but less than the 376 needed to break a deadlock in the government-controlled First House.
An exit poll conducted by the Nation Group and reported by Bloomberg gives Pheu Thai, led by Paetongtarn Shinawatra, daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, 32.6% of the vote in the constituency, while businessman Pita Limjaroenrat’s Move Forward 29 .4% won. , enough for a formal majority.
The best prediction comes from a poll conducted by the Suan Dusit team before the vote, which gives the two sides 352 seats – 246 for Pheu Thai and 106 for Move Forward – 24 short of the majority that would allow them to negotiate a new scoop. minister, regardless of the opinion of the Senate.
However, according to Europa Press, this count is “far from final”.
Thailand held general elections today, its second after the 2014 coup, with the military’s role in the country’s politics at stake.
The country has suffered more than a dozen coups since it became a constitutional monarchy in 1932, the last of which was in 2014, under current Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, when he was commander of the army.
More than 52 million voters were called to vote for 70 parties competing for 500 seats in the House of Representatives, the lower house of Thailand’s National Assembly: 400 are directly elected and 100 are elected through a form of proportional representation.
Thailand’s constitution, adopted in 2017 under military rule, requires the prime minister to be elected through a joint vote of the 500-seat House of Representatives and 250-seat Senate nominated by the ruling junta.
Source: DN
