BANGKOK - A coalition of pro-democracy parties that swept Thailand’s general election in May said it is close to securing enough support from the nation’s pro-establishment Senate to form a government led by Mr Pita Limjaroenrat.

The eight-party alliance has made “satisfactory progress” in winning over enough senators to cross the threshold of 376 votes in a joint sitting of the Parliament that selects the prime minister, according to Ms Sirikanya Tansakun, a deputy leader of the Move Forward Party, which leads the group. 

The Harvard-educated Mr Pita needs the support of at least 64 more lawmakers to the coalition’s current tally of 312 members in the 500-member House of Representatives.

“We’re gaining support from more and more senators and almost hitting the target,” Ms Sirikanya told reporters on Tuesday.

The news of rising support for Mr Pita may help quell investor anxiety over a prolonged political impasse that has spurred foreign funds to dump the nation’s stocks and bonds since the election.

The coalition, which had previously claimed the support of 19 senators, was opposed by a majority of the senators over Move Forward’s vow to amend the country’s tough lese majeste law that penalises insults against the monarchy.  

Move Forward’s secretary-general Chaitawat Tulathon reportedly said in early June that the number of pro-Pita senators had increased to about 40, according to the Bangkok Post.

The two Chambers of Parliament will meet by July 4, or 15 days after the Election Commission certified poll results on Monday.

Another joint sitting will subsequently be convened on July 13 to select the new prime minister, the Bangkok Post reported, citing an unidentified source present at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

Move Forward and Pheu Thai, the biggest parties in the coalition, have yet to reach an agreement on the Speaker’s post, according to Pheu Thai’s deputy secretary-general Phaophum Rojanasakul.

The two groups may settle the dispute before the next meeting of the coalition leaders, he said.

The gathering, originally scheduled for Thursday, will be postponed for now as Mr Pita has contracted Covid-19, Move Forward said in a statement. 

Although Mr Pita was formally confirmed as a lawmaker on Monday, he still faces a probe by the election body and potential new complaints that may lead to his disqualification over his alleged ownership of media shares.

But he has said the saga, which has gripped the nation for weeks, would not get in the way of his prime ministerial bid. BLOOMBERG