{"id":59483,"date":"2023-05-14T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-14T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailysouthafrica.com\/?guid=a697304fcf4d015c6ef8233effff9460"},"modified":"2023-05-14T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-05-14T00:00:00","slug":"million-of-voters-head-to-the-polling-stations-in-thailand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailysouthafrica.com\/million-of-voters-head-to-the-polling-stations-in-thailand\/","title":{"rendered":"Million of voters head to the polling stations in Thailand"},"content":{"rendered":"
Millions of voters started heading to the polls in Thailand as a general election there began Sunday at 8 a.m. local time.<\/p>\n
Around 52 million eligible voters will elect members of a new 500-seat House of Representatives for the next four years.<\/p>\n
Major parties, including Pheu Thai, the Move Forward Party (MFP), United Thai Nation (UTN) Party, Democrat Party, Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) and Bhumjaithai Party will compete.<\/p>\n
Thailand’s political landscape is often divided into two camps: those who support the military establishment and those who support greater democracy and civil liberties.<\/p>\n
Prayuth Chan-Ocha, a retired Royal Thai Army officer, came to power through a military coup in May 2014, ousting the democratically-elected government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.<\/p>\n
He led the military junta until 2019 when he became prime minister of a civilian government appointed by the junta’s hand-picked lawmakers. He has remained in power since, making him one of Thailand’s longest-serving prime ministers.<\/p>\n
The election presents an opportunity for opposition groups to challenge Prayuth’s grip on power.<\/p>\n
Opposition Pheu Thai Party, one of the most popular political parties that won five general elections before being ousted by the coup is leading in most polls with a solid support base in rural areas and working-class voters.<\/p>\n
Also, emerging from the pro-democracy protests in 2020, the progressive Move Forward Party, which quickly gained support among young voters and pro-democracy activists is considered one of the leading contenders, according to polls.<\/p>\n
Around 6,679 candidates are contesting for 500 seats in parliament while 63, including nine women, are nominated by 43 parties for the prime ministership, according to Thai PBS World.<\/p>\n
Voting will end at 5 p.m. with preliminary results scheduled to be announced later Sunday.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Source: Somali National News Agency<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Millions of voters started heading to the polls in Thailand as a general election there began Sunday at 8 a.m. local time.Around 52 million eligible voters will elect members of a new 500-seat House of Representatives for the next four years.Major par…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n