Thailand election: Anutin’s Bhumjaithai declares victory as People’s Party concedes

BANGKOK – The conservative Bhumjaithai Party led by caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has declared victory in Thailand’s general election, after

unofficial preliminary results by local media

on the night of Feb 8 showed his party with a wide lead.

The official counting of votes is still ongoing, but the lead enjoyed by Bhumjaithai – or Thai Pride – may come as a surprise to some observers because it only came in third with 71 out of 500 parliamentary seats at the last election in 2023.

According to projections by the election commission, Bhumjaithai had won 177 constituency seats, followed by People’s Party with 81, Pheu Thai Party with 62, the Kla Tham Party with 56 and the Democratic Party with nine.

At a press conference on the night of Feb 8, a beaming Mr Anutin said that voters had given the party more than it expected.

Saying that his party have the right people to tackle problems faced by the country, he said: “Thailand now is in a steady state and we look forward to moving on with an even stronger Cabinet.”

Always regarded as a “kingmaker” in previous elections, Mr Anutin might just become Thailand’s 33rd prime minister this time when 500 MPs officially convene.

Mr Anutin, 59, has the backing of the elites, conservatives and the establishment.

What might have tipped the balance towards Mr Anutin and his Bhumjaithai could be down to three factors: his strong stance against Cambodia during the two countries’ ongoing border conflict, the introduction of a number of technocrats into his party, and his ability to convince voters that he will have capable Cabinet ministers to tackle the country’s challenges in sectors like the economy and trade.

Dr Napon Jatusripitak, visiting fellow and coordinator of the Thailand Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, credited Bhumjaithai’s technocrats for making the party “palatable to a broad spectrum of Thai conservatives”.

He added that the party also successfully “cultivated a conservative brand premised on stability, casting itself as a bulwark against forces portrayed as excessively disruptive to the existing political and institutional order”.

Riding on the wave of increased nationalism also gave Mr Anutin and his party a boost in voter support.

Dr Titipol Phakdeewanich, political scientist at the Ubon Ratchathani University, said the Bhumjaithai win is “not surprising”. 

Dr Titipol said Bhumjaithai has been playing the nationalism card, not only over the

border conflict with Cambodia

. “But it’s also about the notion of ‘Thai-ness’, namely nation, religion and monarchy, which is one of the main things that they are focusing on.”

As other parties linked to former military junta leaders like former prime minister Prayut Chan-o-cha fall further by the wayside in this election, Bhumjaithai might also have swept up some of the votes from these parties.

Some 60 MPs from parties in the former Pheu Thai coalition who defected to Bhumjaithai had also brought with them their support base.

This time round, the liberal People’s Party, which won the most seats at the 2023 election, did not do as well. This could reflect some voters’ concern about how radical the party may be in wanting to reform Thailand’s systems.

People’s Party leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut told reporters on election night that it was unlikely to win and accepted the people’s choice.

Pheu Thai Party, which has traditionally been popular among rural and low-income voters, also trails Bhumjaithai, according to the unofficial count, despite coming in second in 2023. The party likely has had its reputation dented after its poor performance as the last coalition government.

Pheu Thai is linked to Thaksin Shinawatra and his daughter Paetongtarn, both of whom are former prime ministers. Ms Paetongtarn was

dismissed by the Constitutional Court in August 2025

for violating ethics in her handling of the Thai-Cambodia conflict.

Observers are analysing which political parties Bhumjaithai will ally with to form a coalition government.

They say that Mr Anutin may cut a deal with Pheu Thai and the Democrat Party, led by former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva.

The Democrat Party had been dealing with its own internal strife and a change in leadership until Mr Abhisit returned to helm the party again recently. The oldest political party in Thailand won only 25 seats in the 2023 election.

But Bhumjaithai’s Mr Anutin may court the Democrats to secure at least 251 of 500 seats to form a coalition.

Another possible coalition partner for Bhumjaithai is the Kla Tham Party, whose chief adviser is former deputy agriculture minister Thammanat Prompao.

But Mr Thammanat is a highly controversial figure, who was previously convicted and jailed in Australia in 1994 for drug smuggling offences. He had always denied that conviction, saying it was flour and not heroin.

The progressive People’s Party may likely end up as the opposition again in Parliament as it will not want to align itself with Bhumjaithai again.

It is a numbers game now as significant wheeling and dealing will take place behind closed doors among the key political players.

With it also comes the allocation of sought-after Cabinet positions such as the interior, finance and agriculture portfolios.

Parties that agree to be part of the coalition will demand to helm some of the prominent and budget-rich ministries.

Bhumjaithai will have to navigate this well to ensure the coalition government will not be one that will be unstable and short-lived.

On Feb 8, millions of citizens across the country’s 76 provinces and its capital Bangkok cast their ballots. The turnout was expected to be about 80 per cent to 90 per cent, compared with 75 per cent in the 2023 election, said Election Commission Of Thailand secretary-general Sawaeng Boonmee.

About 60 political parties are taking part in this election, vying for 500 parliamentary seats in the Lower House. Four hundred of these seats are decided on a first-past-the-post basis, while the remaining 100 seats are given out based on each party’s share of the national vote.

The election had been dominated by the Thaksin-linked Pheu Thai Party, the progressive People’s Party and Bhumjaithai Party.

Following the removal of Pheu Thai’s Ms Paetongtarn as prime minister after she was found guilty of an ethical violation, Bhumjaithai’s Mr Anuthin became caretaker prime minister in September 2025, after making a deal with the People’s Party. But the deal later unravelled and Mr Anutin called the snap election.

At the 2023 general election, the liberal Move Forward Party, the previous incarnation of the People’s Party, won

the most number of seats – 151 out of 500 –

but its leader Pita Limjaroenrat was blocked from becoming prime minister as the senators of the Upper House refused to vote for him. This time around, the batch of senators in Parliament today do not have that same special power to vote for the prime minister.

In the 2023 election, Pheu Thai came in second with 141 seats, while Bhumjaithai was third.

Voters at this year’s election also cast ballots on whether they want to change the country’s 2017 Constitution, which was drawn up by the military junta under former prime minister Prayut following the 2014 coup.

The charter has long been criticised for entrenching unelected power – allowing unelected Upper House senators to have a say in approving laws and appointing Constitutional Court judges. Even if this first referendum succeeds, two more referendums are needed before a new charter will emerge, and that can take years.

University student Putthiphong Pemgyim, 22, had already cast her ballots in advance on Feb 1 for the constituency MP and party list. But she made an effort to turn up to vote on the referendum, which did not allow for advance polling.

She said: “Actually, I’m not very confident this vote will change things immediately, but I think I am one voice that may help bring about some change. It will require many voices from all over the country.”

About 53 million citizens across the country were eligible to cast their ballots, with the economy and the border conflict with Cambodia the two top issues weighing on the minds of many.

Voters told The Straits Times that they hope to see changes.

Business owner Rattharinee Sophavasin, 60, said: “Thailand really needs a government right now that doesn’t rely on cronyism, but instead prioritises transparency and solves problems for the whole nation rather than specific groups. 

“We don’t want the old style of ‘sharing the cake’ among ministries or ranks.”