Thursday, May 12, 2011

Elections

Approximately a year after the red shirt protests and riots, the Thai people are going to elect a new Parliament. Earlier this week, Prime Minister Ahbisit announced the dissolution of the House an set an election day of July 3rd.

Even though he was removed during a coup almost five years ago, former PM Thaksin will play a big role in this election. Supporters are counting on his good name to help them win the election, while critics say that he is directly involved in controlling the Peau Thai Party. If true this could violate the five year ban on his involvement in politics, and potentially cause the dissolution of the Peau Thai party.

The consensus seems to be that in order for Peau Thai (red shirts) to form a government, they are going to have to win a majority of votes. Observers think that it will be difficult for them to form a coalition government. Even if the red shirts do win, that doesn't mean that they will be in power long. The previous two red shirt controlled governments ended with the PM's being removed by the courts. So I guess even when its over, it ain't over.

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