Early parliamentary elections were held in Thailand on Sunday, the results of which were a triumph for the incumbent Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and his Bhumjaithai party. According to preliminary counts, the ruling force received about 191-194 seats in the 500-seat House of Representatives, which is almost three times its previous result. This was reported by Bloomberg, writes UNN.
Details
Anutin Charnvirakul's election campaign was based on nationalist rhetoric and an uncompromising defense of the monarchy. On the eve of the vote, the prime minister was granted an audience with King Maha Vajiralongkorn, which analysts interpreted as a symbolic sign of approval from the palace. Unlike previous years, when progressive reformers usually won, this time Thais preferred a "middle-ground party" that promises continuity of policy and avoidance of radical changes in the lèse-majesté law.
Despite the royalists' victory, a referendum was held concurrently with the elections, in which about 65% of citizens supported the idea of creating a new Constitution instead of the current one, developed by the military in 2017. Anutin has already stated that he supports rewriting the basic law, but his administration will guarantee the inviolability of sections concerning the monarch's status.
Coalition formation and economic challenges
To form a government, Anutin will need the support of partners to achieve a majority of 251 votes. The most likely allies are the Klatham party (56-59 seats) and, possibly, the populist Pheu Thai (74-77 seats), associated with the Shinawatra family.
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The main task of the new cabinet will be to revive the economy, which has shown low growth rates of 1% per annum since 2020. Investors expect Anutin to strengthen the country's competitiveness and solve the problems of an aging population.
The prime minister's program already includes large-scale payments and an initiative to hire 100,000 caregivers, which should be part of a strategy to stimulate domestic consumption.
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