Any Thai Sang Thai Party (TST) decision to join the government after the next election will depend on whether its policies are accepted by other parties that will form the ruling coalition.
TST secretary-general, Takorn Tantasith, said the party is ready to sit on the opposition bench if its campaign pledges, including its push to amend the constitution, are not adopted by parties in the coalition.
Asked if the party is open to partnership with the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) and back its leader Prawit Wongsuwon as prime minister, he reiterated TST leader Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan’s stance, that the party will not support the pro-military camp.
Mr Takorn is sure the party will grab more than 25 House seats — the minimum number required for a party to be able to nominate a prime minister.
With the party’s popularity on the rise, he said the TST is hoping to capture between 3-4 million votes in the party list system, which would give it party-list seats “in the double-digits”.
As for the race in the constituency system, the party candidates stand a good chance in at least 40 constituencies, according to Mr Takorn.
Dems tout growth
Meanwhile, Democrat Party leader Jurin Laksanawisit hopes people will give the party another chance, considering its accomplishments in generating revenue for the country.
Urging people to look at the Democrat’s performance in the government coalition over the past four years, Mr Jurin said Thailand has seen an increase in economic growth when compared with many countries.
Mr Jurin said the Democrats succeeded in steering the country through several international crises, such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict, China-US trade war and the Covid-19 pandemic.
He said Thailand generated 10 trillion baht in export revenues, which the government is spending on schemes to develop the country, such as guaranteeing farmers’ incomes and building major infrastructure, in line with the party’s policy, he said.
Mr Jurin also stressed the policy will help the country generate more revenue for the country, especially by exporting more goods, and exploit benefits from free-trade agreements (FTA) and attract international tourists.
Separately, former House speaker and Democrat patriarch Chuan Leekpai said he was proud of the Democrat Party’s policies such as free milk for school children, which was implemented without using the state budget. He has spoken out previously, saying he is worried about the party’s flagging popularity.
MFP sure of chances
Chaithawat Tulathon, secretary-general of the Move Forward Party (MFP), is confident the MFP can win about 100 constituency seats nationwide.
“In the past two weeks, polls show MFP has gradually gained more popularity,” Mr Chaithawat told reporters on Sunday.
Mr Chaithawat is confident the MFP will win at least one constituency seat in each province in the South, which is a stronghold of the Democrats and the PPRP.
The MFP will gain more MP seats in the upper and lower North, as well as the Northeast, and the party also can win 25 seats in the East and Central, including Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan and Pathum Thani, he said.