Thailand's caretaker prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul says he is confident that he has enough parliamentary seats to form government as his conservative Bhumjaithai Party leads a three-way race in the general election count.
South-East Asia's second-largest economy went to the polls on Sunday in a tight race between conservatives aligned with the military and the monarchy, and progressive elements represented by the reform-driven People's Party.
With nearly 95 per cent of polling stations reporting, preliminary results released by the election commission showed Anutin's Bhumjaithai Party winning about 192 seats, compared to 117 for the progressive People's Party, and 74 for the once-dominant Pheu Thai party.
"Bhumjaithai's victory today is a victory for all Thais, whether you voted for Bhumjaithai Party or not," Anutin said at a press briefing.
"We have to do the utmost to serve the Thai people to our full ability."
Anutin set the stage for the snap election in mid-December during a border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia, a move political analysts said appeared to be timed by the conservative leader to cash in on surging nationalism.
At that point he had been in power for less than 100 days, taking over after the ouster of former prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra of the populist Pheu Thai Party over the Cambodian crisis.
Anutin reiterated his commitment to the country's monarchy and military while refusing to confirm if he will need a coalition partner to form the government.
Bhumjaithai could need coalition partners
A simple majority of 251 seats is needed for the body to elect a prime minister to form a new government.
The figures appear to make that total unreachable for Bhumjaithai, in which case it would have to seek partners in a coalition government.
People's Party leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut said that while votes remained to be counted his party did not look likely to win.
Its strongest performance was in the capital, Bangkok, where it swept all 33 constituencies, according to the preliminary totals.
Natthaphong said the party would not join a Bhumjaithai-led government, but would also not form a competing coalition.
"If Bhumjaithai can form a government then we have to be the opposition," Natthaphong told a press conference.
With a message of structural change and reforms to the economy, the People's Party had led most opinion polls during the campaign season.
But in a survey conducted during the campaign's final week and released on Sunday, the National Institute for Development Administration projected that Bhumjaithai would be the winner with between 140 and 150 seats in the 500-member House of Representatives, ahead of 125–135 for the People's Party.
Voters express frustration over cost of living
Outside the Wat That Thong Polling Centre in the middle-class neighbourhood of Ekkamai in downtown Bangkok the ABC spoke to voters about the issues.
Nittaya Tangsirithamma, 75, said she voted Bhumjaithai and added she was motivated because she did not "want people to face more economic problems, because trying to make a living and making ends meet is already difficult".
Others like Sritala Dhanasarnsombut, 39, said they voted for the People's Party because of the need for "fresh blood" in politics.
"I think we need to focus on the economy for local people, especially those living outside Bangkok," she said.
Kamolwan, 41, who is employed as an office worker, would not say who he voted for but said he wanted political leaders to take action.
"I think in the short term I would like to see significant improvement in the economy because we're regarded as a sick Asian country, right. It's really crucial to shift this immediately," he said.
Constitutional referendum
Thai voters were also asked during the vote to decide if a new constitution should replace a 2017 charter, a military-backed document that critics say concentrates power in undemocratic institutions.
It includes a powerful senate chosen through an indirect selection process with limited public participation.
The election commission's early count showed voters backing the referendum by a margin of nearly two to one.
Thailand has had 20 constitutions since the end of absolute monarchy in 1932, with most of the changes following military coups.
If voters back the drafting of a new national charter, the new government and politicians can start the amendment process in parliament with two more referendums required to adopt a new constitution.
"I believe that the party that wins in the next election will have an outsized influence on the direction of constitutional reform, whether we move away from the junta-drafted constitution or not," said Napon Jatusripitak of the Bangkok-based Thailand Future think tank.
ABC/Reuters/AP
