Thailand dissolves parliament  for crucial elections in May

• Election to fuel bitter rivalries.
• Vote to be held May 14 – knowledgeable sources.
• Daughter, niece of 2 Shinawatra PMs leads opinion polls.

Thailand‘s parliament was dissolved on Monday to pave the way for a May election, which would reignite a long-running power battle between a military-backed establishment and a political movement that has dominated elections for two decades.

The Royal Gazette said that King Maha Vajiralongkorn had approved a proclamation dissolving parliament, which would be followed by an election 45 to 60 days later.

No election date has been set, but two sources with knowledge of the situation told sources earlier on Monday that the poll would take place on May 14.

“This is a return of political decision-making power to the people swiftly to continue democratic government with the King as head of state,” said the decree published on Monday.

The election puts the billionaire Shinawatra family and its business friends against competing parties and politicians from the royalist military and old-money conservatives.

With populist policies aimed at Thailand’s working classes, the Shinawatra family-controlled parties have won every election since 2001, including twice by landslides, yet three of their governments have been deposed in military coups or by court judgments.

According to the government’s plan, the May election will pick members of parliament, who, along with the Senate, will select a prime minister by the end of July, with a cabinet established by early August.

In opinion polls, the main opposition Pheu Thai party’s Paetongtarn Shinawatra is the frontrunner for prime minister, with her support soaring 10 points to 38.2% in a poll released over the weekend, more than doubling the support of her nearest rival.

Incumbent Prayuth Chan-ocha, who has been in power since his coup against Paetongtarn’s aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra, has been trailing in polls and was ranked third in the recent National Institute of Development Administration survey (NIDA).

Prayuth will serve as the leader of a caretaker administration until the election.

“I’m glad I’ve built something good, generated revenue for the country, built industry. There has been a lot of investment,” Prayuth, 68, told a news conference after the dissolution.

“You have to ask the people if they are satisfied or not … I have done a lot in the many years that have passed.”

According to the NIDA poll of 2,000 people, 50% of respondents would choose candidates from Pheu Thai.

Paetongtarn declared on Friday that she was certain of winning by a landslide, hoping to avoid any political maneuvering against her party, which has twice been driven from power by judicial judgments and military coups.

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