The Democrat Party is adopting a wait-and-see approach to its political future at a time when two groups are competing fiercely to form a coalition for a new government.
Acting leader Jurin Laksanavisit said after a meeting on Friday that the party agreed to wait for the official results of the March 24 election, expected by May 9, before deciding whether to be part of a new government or the opposition.
The decision will take into consideration the wishes of the 3.9 million voters who supported the Democrats in the election and would not lead to the breakup of the party, he added.
He made the comments at the first meeting of acting executive members since Abhisit Vejjajiva resigned as leader on Sunday night after the disappointing results for the country’s oldest party. The Democrats saw their vote total fall 56% from 8.9 million in the last election held in July 2011. The party's seat total, based on unofficial results, fell to 54 (33 constituency and 21 party list) in the 500-member parliament, from 159 (115 constituency and 44 party list) in 2011.
Veteran members also joined the five-hour talks, including Thaworn Senneam, who called on the party to join the Palang Pracharath Party on grounds that it won the most popular votes, 8.4 million against 7.9 million for Pheu Thai, which has already announced plans for a seven-party governing coalition.
Mr Thaworn joined the now-defunct People’s Democratic Reform Committee, led by former Democrat dealmaker Suthep Thaugsuban, in street protests against the Pheu Thai-led government that culminated in the coup in 2014.
The options for the Democrats could be limited to being part of the Palang Pracharath-led camp or an independent opposition party, deputy leader Korn Chatikavanij pointed out on his Facebook page on Monday. It was “impossible” for the party to join Pheu Thai, he said.
Alongkorn Ponlaboot, another deputy leader, said on Friday that the party would hold talks within 10 days after the Election Commission endorses the poll results in May.
He said young members had proposed that the party sit in opposition regardless of the final results and the positions of other parties.
The mood was reflected by Parit Wacharasindhu, a young candidate in Bangkok, a traditional stronghold where the party won no seats on March 24.
Writing on Facebook on Friday, he urged the party to be independent on the opposition bench. “As one of the 140,000 party members, as one of 3.9 million votes for the Democrat Party and as a young member who still loves the Democrat Party, I would like you to decide to not join all parties in forming a government,” the nephew of departed leader Abhisit Vejjajiva after the party meeting.
The Democrats should not support a government led by parties that do not support “liberal democracy” or “clean democracy”, he added.
