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Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul and Pheu Thai Party leader Chonlanan Srikaew greet each other after a press conference about forming an alliance between Pheu Thai and Bhumjaithai party, in Bangkok, Thailand, August 7, 2023. Pheu Thai and its businesses allies could face similar resistance. Despite abandoning Move Forward, Pheu Thai is lobbying for the backing of its 150 lawmakers in a prime ministerial vote expected later this month. Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat said no decision had been made on whether to vote for a Pheu Thai government. "The path to government for Pheu Thai is now more about Thaksin than the people."

Persons: Anutin Charnvirakul, Chonlanan Srikaew, Athit, Cholnan Srikaew, Thai's Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Pita Limjaroenrat, Veerapat, Thaksin Shinawatra, Thai, Titipol Phakdeewanich, Panarat Thepgumpanat, Chayut, Panu, Martin Petty, Nick Macfie Organizations: Bhumjaithai, Pheu Thai Party, Pheu, REUTERS, Senate, Ubon Ratchathani University, Thomson Locations: Bangkok, Thailand, BANGKOK, Ubon

The military has for decades invoked its duty to defend the monarchy to justify intervention in politics, and used the lese majeste law to stifle dissent, critics say. Much depends on whether Move Forward's main ally, second-place winner Pheu Thai, sticks with it or seeks other coalition partners if Pita's bid looks doomed. King Vajiralongkorn, 70, who has no role in choosing a government, has remained silent on the lese majeste issue since the election. In the last election in 2019, no party would have dared suggest amending the lese majeste law. Pheu Thai, which has 141 seats to Move Forward's 151, could nominate its prime ministerial candidate with the eight-party alliance intact.

Persons: Maha Vajiralongkorn, Suthida, Pita Limjaroenrat, Pita, Seri Suwanpanon, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, Prayuth Chan, Pheu, King Vajiralongkorn, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Thaksin Shinawatra, Titipol Phakdeewanich, Amarat Chokepamitkul, Panu, Kay Johnson, Robert Birsel Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Royal News, Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University, Senate, Ubon Ratchathani University, Royal Household Bureau, Thomson Locations: Bangkok, Thailand, Thai, Handout, BANGKOK, Pheu

☆ Thailand alliance unites on house leadership after spat over speaker
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A southerner and ethnic Malay Muslim in predominantly Buddhist Thailand, Wan Noor has served previously as house speaker and has close ties with Pheu Thai's leadership. "I will conduct duties fairly ... with transparency in considering draft laws and petitions to improve the lives of all Thais," Wan Noor told the house. Pita on Tuesday said Move Forward had "retreated" on its position having been assured by Wan Noor that its policies would be supported. The two deputy speaker positions will go to Move Forward and Pheu Thai. "What we do not know is whether Pheu Thai will switch sides if the initial vote for Pita fails."

Persons: Wan, Wan Noor, Pheu, Pita Limjaroenrat, Pita, Titipol Organizations: Lawmakers, Prachachart Party, Malay Muslim, Facebook, Ubon Ratchathani University Locations: Thailand, Bangkok, Matha, Malay

☆ Fact Check-Photo of dogs in flood water is from Thailand, not 2023 Ukraine dam breach
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A photograph of six dogs caught in a deluge during the worst flooding in Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani city in October 2022 has been miscaptioned online as a scene from Ukraine following the breach of the Nova Kakhovka dam in June 2023. Examples are posted on Facebook (here) and Twitter (here) alongside text suggesting the picture was taken in Ukraine. In October 2022, an unprecedented monsoon season brought frequent and intense downpours that led to widespread flooding in Ubon Ratchathani and other parts of the country (here). The Nova Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine was breached on June 6, 2023 causing flooding in areas across the war zone (here). A photo of six dogs caught in a flood was taken during 2022 floods in Thailand and is unrelated to the 2023 dam breach in Ukraine.

Persons: Read Organizations: Facebook, Twitter, Soi Dog Foundation, Dog, Reuters Locations: Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani, Ukraine, Nova, Thailand, Ratchathani, Ubon Ratchathani

Move Forward's main coalition partner would be the Pheu Thai party, backed by the billionaire Shinawatra family that was - until now - the main challenger of the conservative, military-backed royalist establishment that has held power for the last decade. Pheu Thai, which won the last five general elections but got pushed out of power each time, secured 141 seats, according to the latest projections, only 10 fewer than Move Forward. "There are many obstacles that Move Forward and Pheu Thai have to overcome." Full-time politics came in 2019, when Pita entered parliament with 80 other members of the Future Forward Party. To become prime minister, Pita must also navigate the upper house.

☆ Political analysts, business groups react to Thailand election results
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

THITINAN PONGSUDHIRAK, CHULALONGKORN UNIVERSITY"The top two parties will be Pheu Thai and Move Forward. "Pheu Thai fought the wrong war, the populism war that it already won. That's the new battleground in Thai politics. KEN MATHIS LOHATEPANONT, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN"Since 2001, Pheu Thai has won the largest number of seats at every election comfortably. After two decades, this certainty of Thai politics has been overturned.

This time, Pheu Thai is polling strongly along with the progressive, youth-oriented, Move Forward party. 'LOOKING FOR A DEAL'But bringing her father home may ultimately be the deciding factor for Pheu Thai, and that would force it into a deal with the establishment. "Post election, Pheu Thai will be biding its time and looking for a deal. That's why I think the likelihood of Pheu Thai going with Move Forward is very slim." He said he could envision a deal that allowed Thaksin to return in exchange for minimal jail time and a promise not to run for office.

☆ Exclusive: Daughter of Thaksin banking on nostalgia to win Thailand election
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Juarawee Kittisilpa | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 36, the Pheu Thai Party's most visible candidate for prime minister, speaks during the general election campaign in Ubon Ratchathani province, Thailand, February 17, 2023. REUTERS/Athit PerawongmethaAMNAT CHAROEN, Thailand, Feb 19 (Reuters) - Touting her billionaire family's legacy of populism and massive election victories, Thailand's Paetongtarn Shinawatra is emerging as the candidate to beat in upcoming polls, betting that nostalgia can win millions of working class votes. And only through stable politics can people's lives change in a sustainable manner," she said, while campaigning in the northeast. Thaksin and Yingluck were toppled by the army in 2006 and 2014 respectively, despite overseeing big economic growth. Thailand's election is shaping up to be another grudge match between warring elites in Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy.

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