Bangkok residents vote this Sundayfor the first time since 2013, to the future governor of the capital Thailandin elections marked by the first voters, who represent more than 15.5% of the ballots, and after the protests in favor of democratic reforms registered in the country.
With dozens of electoral debates, in one of which the australian actor intervened Russell Crowe to ask questions of the main candidatesand a wide range of issues, in which the Monarchy has also slipped, these local elections have raised great expectations.
Political analysts have indicated that the result of the votes can be translated into a national key, where the Prime Minister, Prayut Chan-ocha, the general who led the coup from 2014 and since 2019 converted into a politician, he shows enormous wear in the face of the general elections of 2023.
Paradoxically, the elections coincide with the eighth anniversary of the military uprising.
Pollution, the cost of living, infrastructure plans, education and aid to the most vulnerable people are some of the bunch of issues that the candidates have discussed, who have also had to position themselves on a more tricky issue: the Royal House, protected from criticism by local law.
Since the ascension to the throne in 2016 of King Vajiralongkorn, the increase in discontent of a large part of the population about the almighty thai monarchyone of the wealthiest in the world.
In mid-2020, a movement led by university students began a series of massive protests who claim a deep democratic reform of the country and aimed, in an almost unprecedented act, directly at the Royal House.
The covid-19 pandemic and the judicial harassment of the main leaders has plunged the protests for months into a hiato prologand.
But during the electoral campaign, the most progressive candidates have put on the table the problem of the traffic jams caused by the caravan of cars that accompany the members of the monarchy, which they force to cut the road traffic for long periodsas a nod to younger voters.
A key sector in the elections due to the fact that some 700,000 people, or around 15.5% of the 4.5 million voterswill exercise his right for the Bangkok election for the first time.
The clear favourite, according to several polls, is former Transport Minister Chadchart Sittipunt, 55, who is running on an independent platform and presented a 100 point program to improve this chaotic metropolis.
Chadchart, removed from politics since the coup d’état that removed him from his position as Minister of Transport, has managed to combine a feeling of change with the commitment to formulate progressive policies and knowing how to take advantage of the hundreds of jokes that he stars on the internet thanks to his reputation as a strong man.
Bangkok, which has traditionally been a fiefdom of conservative parties, has not held governor elections since 2013, when the Democratic Party won, while the current alderman, Aswin Kwanmuang was handpicked in 2016 by the military junta.
Precisely Aswin -71 years old and independent candidate– Remains second in the polls, but at a significant distance, while other candidates with less possibilities are Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn (44), of the progressive party Move Forward, and the conservative Suchatvee Suwansawat (49), of the Democratic Party.
31 candidates independent and linked to political parties attend the elections, where the representatives of the dozens of city districts.