By Orathai Sriring and Panarat Thepgumpanat
BANGKOK, Feb 9 (Reuters) – Thailand faced a realignment of conservative politics on Monday after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s Bhumjaithai Party won a stronger-than-expected general election victory, with coalition talks expected to start in the coming days.
With 94% of votes counted, Bhumjaithai was way ahead of its rivals after Sunday’s vote, securing 193 of the 500 seats in Thailand’s parliament, according to Reuters’ calculations based on election commission data.
The election result sent Thai stocks up by around 3%, hitting their highest level in more than a year as the risks of further political instability receded.
The People’s Party, which led some polls in the run-up to the vote, trailed on 118, with the Pheu Thai Party third with 74.
A handful of other parties won a combined 115 spots in the 500-seat parliament, according to Reuters calculations, but the final number of party list seats could change under Thailand’s proportional electoral system.
Anutin called the election in December after less than 100 days in office, and has sought to capitalise on a wave of nationalism generated by Thailand’s three-week conflict with Cambodia in December. He described the election result as “a victory for all Thais”.
Bhumjaithai had received 30.2% of the constituency votes, with analysts saying it consolidated the conservative vote after the surge in nationalist fervour, and took a string of seats from the once dominant Pheu Thai, controlled by the billionaire Shinawatra family.
ANUTIN PROMISES CAMBODIA BORDER WALL
Asked about forming a coalition, Anutin said in a Monday news broadcast that he wanted to form a government with a strong majority but he was still waiting to see the final election results.
“We need a strong government,” he said.
Underscoring the role that nationalism played in the vote, Anutin also vowed to build a wall along Thailand’s border with Cambodia and strengthen the military.
“I will still have to build the wall. I must keep strengthening the military’s capabilities. I believe Thai soldiers can win against anyone. And I still believe we need to keep the border checkpoints closed, not open them,” he said.
The prime minister previously indicated that if he was re-elected, the incumbent ministers of finance, foreign affairs and commerce would retain their roles in a new cabinet.
VOTERS BACK CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGE
The left-leaning People’s Party has already ruled out the possibility of joining a coalition led by Anutin, with its leader Natthaphong Rueangpanyawut saying late on Sunday that it would not seek to form a rival coalition.
Polls at the end of January had the People’s Party significantly ahead of Bhumjaithai, but analysts said the surge in nationalism provoked by the Cambodia conflict favoured the conservatives.
Voters also backed a proposal to change the constitution, with nearly two-thirds in favour of replacing a charter put in place after a 2014 military coup, which critics say gave too much power to an undemocratic senate.
It is expected to take at least two years to implement the new constitution, with two more referendums required to endorse the drafting process and the final text.
(Reporting by Orathai Sriring and Panarat Thepgumpanat; Writing by David Stanway; Editing by Stephen Coates)
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