Since the military coup last year, there has been no elected government here in Thailand. Apparently they were supposed to hold the elections in March, then again in July, then said September, but true Thai style...the elections finally happened in December....election day was December 23....the weekend before were the early elections...since people have to travel back to their home provinces to vote..they have early elections the weekend before and then the actual election a week after....this system allows businesses to allow half of the people to travel one weekend and have half of their workforce..and then flip flops it for the actual election weekend. During these weekends no beer is sold but apparently if you are foreign and ask nicely they will sell alcohol to you...and also apparently only beer cannot be sold but whiskey and liquor can be sold?? Not to clear on the whole thing. Also, this election had an enormous importance to the Thai people because apparently if you did not vote in this election you could lose your right to vote in any other elections for 10 years...for this reason I believe that they had some 80% voter turnout.
I had to take pictures of the candidates....they were plastered all over the place. What I found most interesting is that the predominant feature of each poster was the number the person would be on the ballot....because the less educated would only have to remember to put a check by the number in order to vote...never mind the name of the individual or what their beliefs are, or what party they are associated with.....just check next to that number......i guess they must do what works for the entire populous.
It was interesting to be in Thailand during a very important time for voting. I know that my views are really limited but my experience was fascinating.
According to Wikipedia;
List of political parties in ThailandPolitical parties in Thailand lists political parties in Thailand. Thailand has a multi-party system. Prior to the 2001 election, the first election contested under the "People's Constitution" of 1997, all civilian governments were coalition governments. However, in the General Election of 2005, the Thai Rak Thai Party had secured 377 seats of 500 in the lower house, and became the first "one party government" in the history of Thailand.
The parties
Major
* Democratic Party (Phak Prachatipat)
* People's Power Party (Palang Prachachon)
Minor
* Thai Nation Party (Phak Chart Thai)
* Great People's Party (Phak Mahachon)
* Royal People Party (Pracha Raj party)
* Thais United National Development Party (Rua Jai Thai Chat Pattana)
* Neutral Democratic Party (Matchima)
* For the Motherland Party (Phak Pua Paendin)
According to the BBC;
Thaksin ally wins Thai election Samak Sundaravej, leader of the pro-Thaksin People Power Party. 23/12/07
Mr Samak said that Mr Thaksin had already congratulated him
Samak casts his voteThe party allied to Thailand's ousted PM Thaksin Shinawatra has won the general election, initial results from the Election Commission show.
Samak Sundaravej's People Power Party (PPP) won 228 seats in the 480-seat house, short of the 241 needed for an absolute majority.
The election is the first since the 2006 coup that overthrew Mr Thaksin.
Correspondents say the result is a big setback for the military, which has tried to curb Mr Thaksin's influence.
Phone callThe Election Commission said about 93% of votes had been counted and the situation would now not change greatly.
The PPP's main rival, the Democrat Party, is set to win 166 seats and Chart Thai 39.
Mr Samak, 72, claimed victory, saying: "I will be the next prime minister for sure."
He added: "I invite all the parties to join our government."
The leader of the PPP's main rival, the Democrats, Abhisit Vejjajiva, said the election had been a "close race".
"If the PPP succeeds in forming a coalition, the Democrat Party is ready to become the opposition. If the PPP fails, then the Democrat Party is ready to form its own coalition," he said.
Mr Samak said he had spoken to Mr Thaksin, who is in Hong Kong, by telephone.
"Thaksin said 'congratulations'," Mr Samak said.
The PPP leader added: "This is a victory for all Thai people who unreasonably lost their freedom on 19 September."
That was the date in 2006 when the military removed Mr Thaksin and his Thai Rak Thai party from power.
Mr Thaksin, who is now banned from Thai politics, has since lived in self-imposed exile abroad, mainly in Britain.
POST-COUP TIMELINESeptember 2006: Coup overthrows Thaksin Shinawatra
October 2006: Retired General Surayud Chulanont is appointed interim leader
May 2007: Court bans Mr Thaksin from politics for five years, and dissolves his party
August 2007: Voters approve a new constitution
December 2007: Election held
Key election figuresThailand's turbulent year
Profile: Thaksin Shinawatra
In pictures: Thailand votes
However his allies have promised he would return and that the five-year political ban on him would be overturned.
Mr Samak said on Sunday: "Thaksin said he will come back after the government is formed."
If he does return to Thailand, Mr Thaksin will have to answer a number of corruption charges levelled against him in the courts.
Military keyElection monitors said that voting had mostly proceeded smoothly and been well-organised, despite complaints of vote-buying and other irregularities.
HAVE YOUR SAY
Thaksin Shinawatra still holds sway in Thailand. Let us hope the military respects the voice of the electorate.
Pancha Chandra, Brussels
The PPP has concentrated mainly on the poor, rural vote that buoyed Mr Thaksin, while the Democrats have relied on the middle-class urban vote.
The BBC's Jonathan Head says the vote is a dramatic repudiation of the coup, but that it is hard to predict how the military will react to the result.
He says Mr Thaksin still has many enemies in the business and bureaucratic elite and in Bangkok's middle class.
And if there is a coalition, our correspondent says, the resulting multi-party government could well prove weak and short-lived.
Very interesting...some people do not like Thaksin while others love him.....some say that there will probably be another coup....others argue how could the military do that when his party won the military election? Who knows....only time will tell...
