BANGKOK: A preliminary vote count in Thailand’s election indicated an early lead on Sunday (May 14) for the country’s progressive opposition, trailed by ruling coalition parties backed by the military and establishment.
The Pheu Thai Party was ahead with 6.45 per cent of eligible votes counted by 1.33pm GMT (9.33pm, Singapore time), followed by another opposition party, Move Forward, according to the election commission’s preliminary count.
The poll body was expected to announce its preliminary election results by 10pm (11pm, Singapore time).
The election pits a progressive opposition against parties backed by a nexus of old money, conservatives and generals at the heart of two decades of upheaval in Southeast Asia’s second-biggest economy.
An opposition win on Sunday would bring no guarantees that either party would govern, however, even as an alliance, because of parliamentary rules written by the military after its 2014 coup that are skewed in its favour.
Source: CNA
