Thailand Election: Final chance for Pita Limjaroenrat as parliament casts vote for PM

livemint.com:

Reuters, following the victory of Move Forward Party over royalist military-backed parties in the election, Thailand has been under a caretaker administration for the past few months, marking a significant shift after nine years of military-controlled government. Pita Limjaroenrat, a 42-year-old liberal leader of the Move Forward Party, who has received education in the United States, requires the support of over 50% of the bicameral parliament to be officially endorsed as Thailand's next prime minister, Reuters noted. However, he faces strong opposition from the military, which is at odds with his party's anti-establishment aspirations.

The parliamentary regulations, established by the military following a coup in 2014, were designed in a way that favored the military's interests. These rules resulted in Pita's initial defeat in the first round, where he faced opposition from a Senate appointed by generals who have aligned themselves with conservative factions and influential old money families that have traditionally held sway over Thailand's democratic system. Pita has a mountain to climb and knows that if he fails this time, he must honour his pledge to make way for coalition partner and political heavyweight Pheu Thai to field its prime ministerial candidate in the next round.

"I didn't fail. I won the election and formed a coalition and was blocked by the Senate. Let us be clear on that," Pita told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday.

He was 51 votes short and was backed by only 13 of the 249 senators, many of whom abstained or were no-shows, effectively votes against him. Move Forward believes many were pressured to deny him and Pita is hoping some could change their minds. "We're still in deficit, but we have made