Thailand to hold general election on feb. 6

[Sawatdee]

Thursday January 6, 6:16 PM
Thailand to hold general election on Feb. 6

(Kyodo) _ Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej approved Thursday a decree that sets the country's general election for Feb. 6.
The upcoming general election will be held after the House of Representatives completes a full four-year term for the first time since Thailand became a democracy in 1932.

The current term expires in January. In Thailand, a general election must be held within 45 days of the expiry of the term.

In the election, 500 seats -- 400 for constituency representatives and 100 for representatives from political parties -- are up for grab.

Currently, Thaksin's ruling coalition holds more than 300 of the 500 seats in the lower house.

[Stacker]

Just when I was getting a feel for the politics, I am again confused. How is it that this will be the first full four year term to be served yet the democracy has been in place since 1932?

Thaksin holding the majority of seats more or less means he will likely remain the PM?

[Sawatdee]

Friday January 7, 12:18 PM
Thai PM upbeat after drawing lucky number for ballot spot

BANGKOK (AFP) - Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has drawn a lucky number in a lottery to determine how the parties will be listed on nationwide ballots in next month's election.

Thaksin picked a nine, which Thais consider a lucky and auspicious number, putting his Thai Rak Thai party in the ninth spot on the ballot for the February 6 general election.

"We got number nine, a number that shows Thai Rak Thai's determination to lead the people to more progress," he told a cheering crowd outside the stadium where the drawing took place.

Thaksin decline to estimate how many seats his party would win, saying: "I will not set the target as voters will make the decision."

Thai Rak Thai officials earlier predicted they would win more than 350 seats in the 500-seat House of Representatives, which would allow it to form a single-party government.

Thaksin as well as 12 other party leaders drew their numbers in a live national telecast as parties began officially filing their lists of candidates with the independent Election Commission.

Thaksin this week became the first elected civilian leader to complete a full four-year term since democracy first came to Thailand 72 years ago.

Meanwhile Banyat Bantadthan, the leader of the opposition Democrats, who drew number four, categorically rejected the possibilty of forming a coalition government with Thai Rak Thai after the election.

"Thai Rak Thai has a totally different policy and to do that would be tantamount to cheating the people," Banyat told reporters.

[Sawatdee]

Friday January 7, 2:19 PM
Thai parties start registering candidates for Feb. 6 general election
Thirteen Thai political parties showed up Friday to register candidates for the Feb. 6 general election, with the prime minister confidently predicting a return to power.

The Thai Rak Thai (Thais Love Thais) party of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and the main opposition Democrat party are expected to engage in a tough battle during the monthlong campaign period with 500 seats up for grabs in the lower house of parliament.

"Thai Rak Thai will definitely win the election and I will return to office with new faces and old faces in my Cabinet," Thaksin told reporters after registering. He already has said he has a new lineup in mind that will infuse about 50 percent new blood in the 35-member Cabinet.

Thai Rak Thai won the last election in a landslide four years ago, taking 258 seats, then allied with two other parties for a dominant coalition of 319.

The Democrats, the oldest party in Thailand, vowed to improve on the 136 seats they won in 2001.

"I can't say how many seats we will win, because that is the voters' mandate, but I am confident that we will get more seats than in the previous election," said Democrat leader Banyat Banthadthan.

Chart Thai, which won 48 seats in the last election, also was among the parties filing candidates for the 100 party list quota seats that are allocated by vote percentages. Candidates for the 400 directly elected constituency seats will register next Monday to Friday.

About 43 million people are eligible to vote out of a population of 63 million.

The filing period for candidates officially began two days after the government's term expired, officials said.

Thaksin, whose popularity seemed to have been slipping over the outbreak of bird flu and a revival of a violent separatist movement in the deep south last year, may have gotten a boost from his handling of the aftermath of the recent tsunami that badly hit the country's main tourist resort beach strips.