Thai Parliament Prevents Leader of Party that Won Election from Being Renominated for Prime Minister
Pita Limjaroenrat, the leader of the Move Forward Party and top winner in the May's general election, leaves from a meeting room at Parliament in Bangkok, Thailand, Wednesday, July 19, 2023. Photo: AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit
- By Associated Press (AP)
- July 19, 2023 6:04 PM
BANGKOK — Thailand’s Parliament voted Wednesday against allowing the leader of the progressive party that finished first in May’s general election a second chance to be confirmed as prime minister.
Pita Limjaroenrat had assembled a coalition of parties holding a majority of the seats in the House of Representatives. But his nomination for prime minister was defeated in a joint vote of the House and Senate last week, with conservative military-appointed senators mostly refusing their support over ideological differences.
The joint session debated Wednesday whether Pita could be nominated for a second time, and House Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha then put the question to a joint vote. A motion to prevent him from running again was passed by a vote of 395 to 312, with eight abstentions. The meeting of Parliament was then adjourned.
