A Thai voter casts her ballot in the country's general election on March 24 (Photo: AFP/VNA) Bangkok (VNA) – Voting is underway in the general election in Thailand onMarch 24 with over 50 million people eligible to cast votes.
Up to 92,320 polling stations served the general election, the first since the militarycoup in 2014, starting from 8:00 to 17:00. Preliminary unofficial results areexpected to be announced at 20:00 the same day.
Atotal of 81 parties are contesting the election, and thousands of candidateswill vie for 350 constituencies. The other 150 members of the House ofRepresentatives will be elected from the national party lists under a system ofproportional representation.
Underthe new electoral system, having the most number of MPs in the 500-seat Houseof Representatives may not be enough to win the premiership. Thailand’s newConstitution empowers 250 military-backed senators to join 500 MPs in selectingthe prime minister during the initial period.
Prominentcandidates include Sudarat Keyuraphan from the Pheu Thai party; former primeminister Abhisit Vejjajiva from the Democrats; and a young telecomsbillionaire, Thanatorn Juangroongruangkit, from the new Future Forward party.Notably, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, who led the military coup in 2014, has beennominated as the only prime ministerial candidate of the newly formedpro-military Palang Pracha Rath Party.
A 24-hour alcohol ban began 6 pm on March 23 dueto the election.
A representative from the Election Commission of Thailand said a group representingforeign countries and international organisations is observing the election.The group includes those from foreign embassies in Bangkok, such as that ofAustralia, Bhutan, Cambodia, the Republic of Korea, and Vietnam.-VNA
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