24 March 2019
Election under new charter results in 19 coalition parties
After being put off six times since it was first promised by junta leader Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, the much-awaited general election was finally held on March 24 under a complex new electoral system with 500 seats up for grabs. The poll was held under a new rule in which a single ballot was used and votes cast for constituency candidates were used to calculate party-list seats to be distributed among qualified parties.
The election rules put forth by the Constitution Drafting Committee under an organic law on the election of MPs were heavily criticised and did exactly what political observers said they would do—favour medium-sized and small parties. It turned out that 27 political parties won, with 13 micro parties receiving one party-list seat each.
While the lead opposition Pheu Thai Party managed to capture the lion’s share of seats—136 in total—political observers said it was far fewer than the 200 House seats it was expected to win.
The Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), which nominated Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha as its prime ministerial candidate, did better than expected, winning 117 seats from the constituency and party-list systems. The party was expected to capture only around 60 to 80 seats.
Some 180 days after the general election, the PPRP eventually formed a razor-thin coalition government with 254 seats and 19 political parties under its wing.
24 March 2019
Election under new charter results in 19 coalition parties
After being put off six times since it was first promised by junta leader Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, the much-awaited general election was finally held on March 24 under a complex new electoral system with 500 seats up for grabs. The poll was held under a new rule in which a single ballot was used and votes cast for constituency candidates were used to calculate party-list seats to be distributed among qualified parties.
The election rules put forth by the Constitution Drafting Committee under an organic law on the election of MPs were heavily criticised and did exactly what political observers said they would do—favour medium-sized and small parties. It turned out that 27 political parties won, with 13 micro parties receiving one party-list seat each.
While the lead opposition Pheu Thai Party managed to capture the lion’s share of seats—136 in total—political observers said it was far fewer than the 200 House seats it was expected to win.
The Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP), which nominated Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha as its prime ministerial candidate, did better than expected, winning 117 seats from the constituency and party-list systems. The party was expected to capture only around 60 to 80 seats.
Some 180 days after the general election, the PPRP eventually formed a razor-thin coalition government with 254 seats and 19 political parties under its wing.