On Monday, Prayuth became a member of the newly formed Ruamthai Sarngchart party, which has pledged to nominate the previous army chief as its candidate for prime minister. The move ends his split from the military-backed Palang Pracharath party, which supported his bid for the highest job 4 years ago.
“There is a lot of work to be completed and that is why I need to put in more effort to get it done,” Prayuth said after registering and becoming a member of Ruamthai, also generally known as the United Nation of Thailand party. “I am here not because I want to stay, but because Thailand must continue to act.”
“Switching alliances is normal in Thai politics, but this time it is more intense as electoral rules have changed significantly and the dispute centers on whether to keep Prayuth in power,” said Yuttaporn Issarachai, a political scientist at Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University. “After more than eight years of existence as an army, the stakes are now higher.”
Thailand is anticipated to carry general elections in May and the term of office of the 500-member House of Representatives will end on March 23.
A series of election changes, including a return to a two-ballot system and reducing the variety of party-list lawmakers, will give a bonus to larger political parties resembling Palang Pracharath and Pheu Thai.
‘One family’: Thai ministers welcome Chinese tourists with flowers
‘One family’: Thai ministers welcome Chinese tourists with flowers
“Removing Prayuth from the equation will help Prawit put an end to the faction wars in Palang Pracharath and open the door for him to more conveniently broker deals with other parties,” Yuttaporn said. “The two must never be in conflict, because if they do, it will be the end of the military’s influence on politics.”
Still, the ruling party can have to depend on Prayuth and his recent party to form a coalition to stop Pheu Thai from outright victory. It can be a repeat of the 2019 elections, when Pheu Thai won probably the most seats but was thwarted by Palang Pracharath, who unexpectedly formed a coalition consisting of Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s Bhumjaithai Party and the Democratic Party.
Others wish to merge with like-minded parties, although this may occasionally take a while as politicians argue over who will likely be the enlarged party’s recent leader and prime ministerial candidate. For example, former Pheu Thai chief strategist Sudarat Keyuraphan and former economic czar Prayuth Somkid Jatusripitak announced that their recent parties would develop into allies for now while merger talks proceed.
Pheu Thai, which enjoys a transparent lead in election polls, has ruled out forming alliances in a bid to go off speculation it could join forces with Palang Pracharath and Bhumjaithai.
The party desires to concentrate on securing an easy majority by itself. This just isn’t unattainable, provided that Pheu Thai is counting on support from the agricultural northeast, which has allowed it and other Shinawatra clan-affiliated parties to win probably the most seats in Thai elections in greater than 20 years.
About 3 in 4 Thais think Thaksin’s Pheu Thai party should govern: poll
About 3 in 4 Thais think Thaksin’s Pheu Thai party should govern: poll
Pheu Thai is already putting up campaign posters across the country. The most visible is the face of Thaksin’s daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, who’s probably the most preferred candidate in election polls, although her party has not yet officially nominated her.
Prayuth’s gamble may repay. He retains support within the southern provinces and should benefit from the favor of the royalist establishment. He has increased his public appearances and last week was seen in traditional Thai garb, planting paddy rice and signing autographs for fans.
“It is quite predictable that the military will remain in power, through Prayuth or Prawit, because it has the Senate on its side, and that is the most important factor,” said Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of political science at Ubon Ratchathani University.
