Thai pro-democracy factions on Tuesday moved to unite and thwart a junta-backed party from forming a government after the first election since a 2014 coup.The junta appeared to be in pole position to return to power as a civilian administration after preliminary results from Sunday's poll showed its proxy party had secured an unexpected majority of the popular vote.Around 7.6 million votes went to Phalang Pracharath with 94 percent of ballots tallied, the Election Commission has said.Tha

Thailand's election was "rigged" to ensure the military retain their grip on power, former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, a towering behind-the-scenes figure in the politically turbulent kingdom, said on Monday.Junta leader Prayut Chan-o-cha, an arch foe of ousted billionaire tycoon Thaksin, appears poised for victory after his army-linked party made a strong showing in Sunday's poll, aided by a new constitution that gives him a head start.Election officials delayed without e

Thailand's ruling junta took an unexpected lead in the country's first election since a 2014 coup with more than 90 percent of ballots counted, election authorities said late Sunday, putting it on course to return to power at the expense of the kingdom's pro-democracy camp.The election, which saw an insipid 64 percent turnout, was held under new laws written by the military to smooth its transformation into a civilian government.While it had set the rules of the game in its fav

Polls opened Sunday for the first Thai election since a 2014 coup, with a high turnout expected among a public who received a cryptic last-minute warning from the Thai king to support "good" leaders to prevent "chaos."All television stations repeated the rare statement by King Maha Vajiralongkorn moments before polls opened across the politically turbulent country.Sunday's election pits a royalist junta and its allies against the election-winning machine of billionair

Tomorrow, 24 March 2019, is a day that will forever be etched in the history books. Tomorrow, Thais will choose who they want to lead them to glory or perhaps drag the country down to damnation. While some pundits believe that victory is already in the hands of general turned prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, and that whoever wants to taste victory should align themselves to the military; the ultimate choice still lies in the hands of those who will make their mark on the ballot papers.

Itthipol Khunpleum grabs the mic, bounds onto the stage and flashes a winning smile as he works the crowd gathered for a final rally: "Chonburi...show me your hands!" he says to wild applause.But he need not have bothered.

Parties for and against Thailand's military junta rallied across Bangkok on Friday, as election fever gripped the country ahead of its first poll in eight years.The boisterous final push before the 24 March showdown was infused with rarely seen levels of excitement and backlit by symbolism from afar, with the family of ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra holding a politically star-studded wedding in Hong Kong on the same night.The generals who seized power in 2014 are hoping to hold on through

With elections mere days away, the number of parties contesting for the hearts and minds of Thai voters is overwhelming. The Pheu Thai Party has formed several splinter parties with all of them vying for seats.

Dressed in a Superman suit with a red cape flowing behind him, a sweaty David Pfizenmaier jogs through Bangkok's standstill traffic and stops to unfurl a sign."If you love Thailand: Vote," it says, below the hashtag #supermanbangkok.Thais go to the polls this weekend for the first time since a coup in 2014.The 40-year-old Thai-German said Thursday he is not campaigning for a specific party, but is instead on a mission to boost turnout, especially among younger voters, "bec

Thailand’s junta leader Prayut Chan-o-cha has had absolute executive power since toppling the government five years ago. Now he’s looking to keep his job after an election – something previous military leaders in Southeast Asia’s second-biggest economy have struggled to do.The former army chief, who turns 65 this week, seized power after a coup in May 2014 and has led the longest period of army rule in modern Thai history.