(Coorects spelling of government in headline)
BANGKOK (Reuters) -The likely date for a general election in Thailand is March 29, a senior government official told Reuters on Friday after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul discussed the issue with the country’s Election Commission.
The Prime Minister has earlier said he plans to dissolve parliament by the end of January, with a general election to follow in March or early April.
“The government and the Election Commission have discussed the timeframe for holding the election,” said Paradorn Prissananantakul, a minister attached to the prime minister’s office.
“The most likely date is March 29,” he said.
Paradorn also said that a referendum on a new constitution and another to decide whether to revoke two agreements concerning border demarcation with Cambodia will likely take place alongside the general election.
The Election Commission has yet to formally set the election date but its chairman Ittiporn Boonpracong said the details will be worked out on both the poll vote and the two referendums, which will likely take place on the same day.
The estimated budget for the election and referendums will stand at 9 billion baht ($274.81 million), and about 53 million Thais are eligible to participate, Ittiporn said.
Anutin won a parliamentary vote in early September to become Thailand’s third prime minister since August 2023, after having withdrawn his Bhumjaithai party from a ruling coalition led by the Pheu Thai party.
To win power, Anutin secured the backing of the largest grouping in parliament, the opposition People’s Party, but calling an election within four months of taking office and holding a referendum on a new constitution were two of the conditions of its support.
($1 = 32.7500 baht)
(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Panu Wongcha-um; Writing by Orathai Sriring; Editing by David Stanway)
