Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul's Bhumjaithai party won a larger-than-expected victory in the general election, with 192 out of 500 seats in Thailand's parliament, Reuters reported, citing election commission data after counting nearly 95% of the votes.
Coalition talks are expected to begin in the coming days.
„Bhumjaithai“ has significantly outpaced its rivals after yesterday's election. The People's Party, which had led in some polls ahead of the election, came in second with 117 seats, while the Pheu Thai party came in third with 74.
Several other parties won a combined 117 seats in the 500-seat parliament, according to a Reuters tally, but the final number of party-list seats could change under Thailand's proportional representation system.
The ruling party won 30.2 percent of the vote, with analysts saying it consolidated the conservative vote after a surge in nationalist sentiment took a number of seats from the once-dominant Pheu Thai, controlled by the billionaire Shinawatra family. Asked about forming a coalition and appointing a cabinet, Anutin said he was waiting for the final results to be clear and that each party would have to hold internal discussions on how to proceed.
The prime minister had earlier indicated that if he were re-elected, the current ministers of finance, foreign affairs and trade would keep their posts in the new government. Anutin called the election in December, after less than 100 days in office, and sought to capitalize on a wave of nationalism sparked by the three-week conflict between Thailand and Cambodia. He described the election result as a “victory for all Thais“.