Thailand election: junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha a shoo-in for prime minister? Not quite
- Other power brokers could be in the running to lead the country, including royal privy councillor and long-time technocrat Ampon Kittiampon
Post-election political machinations in Thailand put on hold for the kingdom’s once-in-a-generation coronation ceremony are stirring once again, but observers say they remain none the wiser on who will emerge prime minister following March’s disputed poll.
Junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha, prime minister since a 2014 coup, is still odds-on to keep his job in a civilian government set to take power in the coming weeks.
However, the messy outcome of the March 24 vote, which failed to give the pro-junta Palang Pracharath Party a clear advantage, means other power brokers could be in the running to lead the country, analysts say.
Among them is royal privy councillor and long-time technocrat Ampon Kittiampon, a little known personality outside Thai political circles.
He is viewed as a middle-of-the-road choice who could heal the decades-old stand-off between the pro-military establishment and the rural-backed movement linked to the powerful Shinawatra clan.
James Buchanan, a Thai politics observer with City University of Hong Kong, said the lack of clarity on Prayuth’s future – his continuation as prime minister was previously viewed as a mere formality – suggested the outcome is not scripted as most observers believe it to be.