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Thai politics

Thailand: EC deadline for certifying candidates is Aug. 1

Reuters reports today that:

Thailand’s election authority was racing on Wednesday to endorse dozens of winning candidates from the July 3 general election to pave the way for a new parliament to convene and select a prime minister, tentatively expected in early August.

So far, 402 of the 500 winners have been approved by the Election Commission (EC), which is struggling with a deluge of complaints that it must process in the next few days.

If all goes as expected, Yingluck Shinawatra, a sister of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, will become Thailand’s first female prime minister after her Puea Thai Party won the election in a landslide.

By law, the EC needs to confirm 95 percent of the winners, or 475 of the 500 house seats, to give the lower house a quorum to hold a formal opening by Monday, August 1. The EC has indicated it could complete the process by Wednesday, July 27.

Stay tuned.

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