MFP loses one seat, Bhumjaithai gains another in latest EC count
With the Election Commission (EC) finalising the official vote counts of the May 14 general election, Move Forward Party will see its number of MP seats reduced by one and Bhumjaithai Party will gain another, a source familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
The source said there will be an update to the EC’s earlier unofficial vote count via ECT Report system, which first reported that Move Forward won a total of 152 MP seats, 113 from constituency voting and 39 from party-list votes.
The source said the ECT Report has yet to include the final result of Prachinburi province’s constituency 3, where Bhumjaithai candidate Sarit Bootnian beat the Move Forward candidate. This means Bhumjaithai will see its MP seats rise to 68 in constituency votes while Move Forward will have one less seat at 112, the same number as Pheu Thai Party.
Prachinburi, a province east of Bangkok, has a total of 3 constituencies. Move Forward won in constituency 2 and Bhumjaithai came top in the rest.
With Move Forward’s win of 39 seats in the popular vote, the party will have a total of 151 MPs from the May 14 general election and remain on top as the party with most seats, with Pheu Thai coming in second place with 141 seats (112 constituency and 29 party-list).
Bhumjaithai Party, meanwhile, will have a total of 71 seats, 68 from constituency voting and 3 from party-list voting. The party is led by outgoing Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and has not been invited to join Move Forward’s coalition to form the new government.
The coalition comprises eight partners — Move Forward Party, Pheu Thai Party, Thai Sang Thai Party, Prachachart Party, Seree Ruam Thai Party, Pheu Thai Ruam Palang Party, Fair Party, and Plung Sungkom Mai Party.
The source added that this number is an update of the official vote count, but is not the EC’s final version of the election result, which will be announced 60 days after the election date.
