Thai Parliament passes election changes favouring ruling party

BANGKOK • Thailand's Parliament has passed major electoral changes favouring larger parties, a move that is expected to help Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's military-backed organisation amid speculation of an early election.

Most major political parties backed a set of constitutional amendments that include increasing the number of constituency representatives to 400 from 350 and bringing back the system of two ballots - one for a candidate and another for a political party.

At a joint Parliament session yesterday, 472 lawmakers voted for the changes, while 187 abstained and 33 voted against.

The amendments now need King Maha Vajiralongkorn's endorsement.

The changes are the latest attempts by Thailand's royal establishment to fine-tune election rules already stacked in favour of the military and its allies, and are among signs pointing to another election before the government's four-year term ends in early 2023.

The amendments fall well short of the charter overhaul demanded by pro-democracy protesters.

"These changes will boost dominance of large political parties in the next election and cement the course for the key ruling party to return as the government," said Dr Punchada Sirivunnabood, a visiting fellow at Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute who researches Thai politics.

The key beneficiary of the changes is expected to be the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, which is back by the military.

That is because the Constitution also gives 250 senators appointed by the military a vote for prime minister. This means a former general is still likely to run the country after the next election.

Supporters of the changes argue that by increasing the number of constituencies, each district gets redrawn to a smaller one that allows representatives to work more closely with ordinary citizens.

The two-ballot proposal would let voters choose different candidates and parties, encouraging more public scrutiny of their policy platforms.

But critics say this will spur more vote buying and make it far harder for smaller parties to win.

Thailand uses a modified version of the mixed-member proportional representation. Lawmakers in the 500-member Lower House comprise those directly elected by voters and those put forward by parties based on how well each party does in the nationwide polls.

"The government... can make these moves for political gain as long as the power structure and the conservative forces that put them in power remain the same," said Dr Titipol Phakdeewanich, dean of the political science faculty at Thailand's Ubon Ratchathani University.

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