Bangkok governor election seen as national harbinger
ABC News
Residents of the Thai capital, Bangkok, will cast their ballots for the city’s leader Sunday in a vote seen as a barometer of the public mood ahead of an approaching general election
BANGKOK -- Residents of the Thai capital, Bangkok, will cast their ballots for the city’s leader Sunday in a vote seen as a barometer of the public mood ahead of an approaching general election.
Opinion polls suggest that candidates associated with opposition parties in Parliament will dominate in the race, while the incumbent, who is seen as the ruling party’s choice, trails behind.
Bangkok, the country’s biggest city, is legally a province and the only one where residents can choose their own governor. The position elsewhere is appointed by the Interior Ministry. It has been nine years since the last election, and voters' choice last time was replaced in 2016 by an appointee of the military government then leading Thailand.
Thai politics since a 2006 coup has been generally polarized between pro- and anti-military parties, and the top candidates reflect that schism.
