Thailand’s ruling junta took an unexpected lead in the country’s first election since a 2014 coup with more than 90 percent of ballots counted, election authorities said late Sunday, putting it on course to return to power at the expense of the kingdom’s pro-democracy camp.
The election, which saw an insipid 64 percent turnout, was held under new laws written by the military to smooth its transformation into a civilian government.
While it had set the rules of the game in its favour, analysts had not expected the party to win the popular vote, given mounting anger at junta rule and the enduring popularity of Pheu Thai, the party of ex-premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
But the army-linked Phalang Pracharat party, which wants junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha to return as premier, gained more than 7.6 million votes with 93 percent of ballots tallied, according to the Election Commission.
That was nearly half a million more than Pheu Thai, which is adored in the northeast which carries around a third of Thailand’s population.
The Election Commission unexpectedly postponed the release of fuller results until Monday, including the numbers of lower house seats won by each party.
But questions quickly began to percolate over an election that saw a massive 1.9 million votes invalidated and which many expect to dish up disputes and disqualifications of candidates and parties over the coming days.
