Preliminary scrutiny of Thailand's general election gives the ruling Bhumjaithai party an advantage in the House of Representatives. The progressive Popular Party, second in the pre-count, but without allies, declared itself ready to enter the opposition with 79% of the votes counted. The nation of 53 million also decides whether to renew the Constitution.

First modification: 02/08/2026 - 16:47 Last modification: 02/08/2026 - 16:47

This Sunday, February 8, Thailand is experiencing general elections in which 53 million people are eligible to vote for some 5,089 candidates, registered in 57 political parties, as well as to decide on the drafting of a new Constitution.

At stake are the 500 seats in the House of Representatives – 400 per constituency and 100 per party list – which will decide who will be the new prime minister. Some 93 politicians have formally presented themselves as possible candidates to preside over the government.

The three parties with the best chances at the polls embody antagonistic visions of politics: from the progressive People's Party, through the populist Pheu Thai party, to the ruling and conservative Bhumjaithai, with an effective machine to mobilize voters in the voter-rich northeast.

With approximately 79% of the votes counted, the results of the electoral commission give the advantage to the Bhumjaithai party, supported by the nationalism that aroused the conflict between Thailand and Cambodia.

"Nationalism is at the heart of Bhumjaithai," Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul declared after hearing the preliminary count, adding that he would wait for the official results before contacting partners for a coalition government. “The only thing we can say now is that we will do it for the good of the country as a top priority,” he said.

Anutin has been acting prime minister since September last year, after being part of the cabinet of his predecessor, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, ousted for an ethical violation in the context of the Cambodian crisis.

Bhumjaithai would obtain 177 seats - of the 251 needed to obtain a majority -, followed by the People's Party (80), Pheu Thai (79) and the Klatham party, which obtains 59.

The ruling party is not expected to achieve a clear majority in the legislature, which implies a foreseeable need to form coalitions. However, party leaders indicated that they are not actively seeking coalition agreements.

The electoral commission has not yet released an official distribution of seats and it is expected that the final results will be confirmed after final verification.

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The leader of the Popular Party, Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, in contrast to the other most voted formations, recognized, after the first results, that it was unlikely that his party would win the elections and declared himself ready to be in the opposition if Bhumjaithai formed a government. The group swept the votes from the capital, where it would win all 33 electoral districts.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul called early elections in mid-December, in the midst of an intense border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia, which a section of the press interpreted as a planned move by the conservative leader to take advantage of growing nationalism.

In a poll conducted during the final week of the campaign that was released on Sunday, the National Institute of Development Administration projected that Bhumjaithai would be the winner with between 140 and 150 seats in the 500-member House of Representatives, ahead of the People's Party's 125-135.

A new Constitution?

The Thais also decide this Sunday whether to call for the drafting of a new Constitution to replace the one proclaimed in 2017, an idea that, according to the electoral commission's preliminary count, almost two-thirds of voters have supported.

Magna Carta grants great power to the Senate, which is elected through an indirect selection process with limited public participation.

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Thailand has had 20 constitutions since the fall of the absolute monarchy in 1932. Most reforms have been preceded by military coups.

If voters support drafting a new national charter, the new government and lawmakers can begin the amendment process in parliament, with two more referendums required to adopt a new constitution.

With information from Reuters, AP and local media.

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