Thai voters elect a new House of Representatives.

SGGPO 14/05/2023 12:48

On the morning of May 14th, Thai voters began casting their ballots to elect a new 500-seat House of Representatives. Voting started at 8:00 AM (Vietnam time) and will continue until 5:00 PM at 95,000 polling stations nationwide. An estimated more than 52 million eligible voters are expected to participate in this election.

Voters cast their ballots at a polling station in Bangkok. Photo: CNA

Although nearly 70 parties are participating, the election is expected to be a race primarily between two parties: the United Thailand Nation (UTN) of incumbent Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and Pheu Thai, an offshoot of the Thai Rak Thai party of exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Thai Rak Thai no longer exists.

With inflation weighing heavily on Thailand's post-pandemic economic recovery, issues related to daily life have been highlighted by candidates in their campaign promises.

Most parties promised welfare programs, such as raising the minimum wage, paying pensions, deferring debt, and guaranteeing agricultural prices. Pheu Thai pledged to pay 10,000 baht (US$293) via e-wallet to every citizen aged 16 and above. The parties also committed to rewriting the 2017 Constitution.

Voters cast their ballots at a polling station in Hat Yai. Photo: CNA

This year, over 6,000 candidates will compete for 500 seats in the Lower House of the Thai Parliament , comprising 400 constituency seats and 100 party-listed seats. Each voter will receive two ballots: one to vote for a candidate in their local constituency and the other to choose a national political party. The 400 constituency seats will be awarded to the candidates who receive the most votes in each district.

Meanwhile, 100 seats on the party list will be allocated proportionally to political parties based on the proportion of votes nationwide. A party or group of parties needs to win or gather at least 251 of the 500 seats in the House of Representatives to form a government.

Earlier, the Election Commission of Thailand (EC) estimated that voter turnout could reach 85%. According to EC Deputy Secretary-General Suranee Pontawee, the agency expected to announce preliminary results at 10 PM on the same day.

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/cu-tri-thai-lan-bau-ha-vien-khoa-moi-post689613.html