1996 Thai general election

none Thailand parliamentary 1995 Thai general election 1995 2001 Thai general election 2001 All 393 seats in the House of Representatives 197 17 November 1996 38,564,593 62.42% ( 0.38pp) Chavalit Yongchaiyudh.jpg 150 120 160 7 17 Chavalit Yongchaiyudh New Aspiration Party 12.30%, 57 seats 125 68 16,585,528 29.14% 16.84pp Chuan Leekpai 1999 cropped.jpg 140 120 160 0 10 Chuan Leekpai Democrat Party (Thailand) 22.28%, 86 seats 123 37 18,007,006 31.78% 9.50pp Chatichai Choonhavan-George Bush meeting (cropped).jpg 140 120 160 0 5 Chatichai Choonhavan National Development Party (Thailand) 11.95%, 53 seats 52 1 7,044,304 12.38% 0.43pp Banharn Silpa-archa (cropped).jpg 180 120 160 2 25 Banharn Silpa-archa Thai Nation Party 22.83%, 92 seats 39 53 5,621,890 9.88% 12.95pp Montri Phongphanit.jpg 170 120 160 10 17 Montri Pongpanich Social Action Party 3.98%, 22 seats 20 2 3,036,544 5.33% 1.35pp 1996 Thailand Election Result Map.png Majority of seats won by parties by province#ffff00New Aspiration #00A1F1Democrat #FFAE41National Development #E90080Chart Thai#02008cSocial Action #008000Solidarity #00ffeaThai Citizen grayNo majority Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa Thai Nation Party Chavalit Yongchaiyudh New Aspiration Party Early general elections were held in Thailand on 17 November 1996. The result was a victory for the New Aspiration Party, which won 125 of the 393 seats, despite winning fewer votes than the Democrat Party. Voter turnout was 62.4%.Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume II, p288 0-19-924959-8 Background The previous general elections had been held in July 1995 and resulted in Banharn Silpa-archa of the Thai Nation Party becoming prime minister. However, concerns about Banharn's ability to ensure a strong economy grew after several unpopular cabinet appointments, including the appointment of Surakiart Sathirathai as Finance Minister, a move that met with the disapproval of the business community due to the sharp economic downturn that followed. A growing number of other ministers and deputy ministers were accused of corruption and manipulating the stock exchange for personal profit.Bunbongkarn Suchit 1997 Thailand's November 1996 Election And Its Impact On Democratic Consoldiation Democratization 4 2 154–165 10.1080/13510349708403519 A motion of no confidence was put forward in the House of Representatives in September 1996. Most of the Thai Nation Party's coalition partners deserted the government during the debates. Although they eventually voted for against the motion, they demanded Banharn resign within seven days of the vote. The threats of defection by two coalition partners — the New Aspiration Party (NAP) and the Leading Thai Party — forced Banharn to agree to resign. The terms demanded that he step down and a new cabinet be formed with NAP leader Chavalit Yongchaiyudh as head of government. However, although Banharn agreed to step down, he dissolved the House of Representatives rather than allowing Chavalit to become prime minister.Maisrikrod Surin Autumn 1997 Thailand's 1996 Election: A Cheer for Democracy The Australian Quarterly 69 1 30–39 20634763 10.2307/20634763 Campaign MPs changing parties prior to the elections resulted in the consolidation of the political field into four major parties, and a total of 2,310 candidates from 13 political parties contested the elections. National issues were more important to urban voters and less important to rural voters. The electorate's biggest concern was the economic slowdown, but the economic platforms of the major parties were not significantly different. Most parties focused on fiscal discipline and reducing the current account deficit. Conduct PollWatch called the legitimacy of the election into question and refused to ratify the results. They announced that the elections could not have been clean and fair due to the vast amounts of money used during the election and the abuse of power, intimidation, and violence against voters, as well as open cheating on election day by government officials. The elections saw a large increase in the amount of money spent on campaigns and an increase in vote-buying. PollWatch estimated that candidates spent around 20 to 30 billion baht on buying votes, and candidates reportedly paid between 100 and 1,500 baht for a single vote, with some even paid 5,000 baht. Vote buying tended to be focused on areas where influence could be purchased relatively cheaply, and most of the vote-buying occurred in the north-east region. Of the 5,294 complaints PollWatch received about malpractice, 2,730 of them were related to vote-buying. Results The results showed a close two-way race between the NAP and the Democrat Party. Although the Democrats received the most votes and won 123 seats, the NAP won 125 seats and became the largest party in the House of Representatives. 60% of the MPs were re-elected, and only 22 of the 393 elected members were women. Nearly three-quarters of had bachelor’s degrees or higher, with 58% being under 50 years old. The results showed a regionalization of support for different parties. The NAP dominated in the north-east, where Chavalit had established a strong base during his period as Army Commander, building ties with the officials and business leaders. The South has long been a Democratic stronghold, with the Democrats having cultivated strong ties with young Muslim voters. Support in Bangkok shifted from the Palang Dharma Party to the Democrats, who gained the support of the city's elite and provincial voters and won 29 of the city's 37 seats. File:20th Thailand House of Representatives composition (1996).svg Democrat Party 18087006 123 +37 New Aspiration Party 16585528 125 +68 National Development Party 7044304 52 –1 Thai Nation Party 5621890 39 –53 Social Action Party 3036544 20 –2 Thai Citizen Party 2330135 18 0 Palang Dharma Party 1550170 1 –22 Solidarity Party 1011299 8 0 Seritham Party (1992) th พรรคเสรีธรรม (พ.ศ. 2535) Seritham Party 708430 4 –7 Mass Party 680204 2 –1 Thai Party th พรรคไท (พ.ศ. 2539) 164464 1 New Liberal Democracy Party 56804 0 New Labour Party 40798 0 New +2 23438248 632502 38564593 Nohlen et al. Aftermath Chavalit became prime minister, leading a coalition government consisting of the National Development Party, Social Action Party, Thai Citizens' Party, Seritham Party (1992) th พรรคเสรีธรรม (พ.ศ. 2535) Seritham Party and Mass Party. References Thailand General General election Category:General elections in Thailand