Thailand likely to hold new general election in July

BANGKOK - Thailand is likely to hold a new general election on July 20 or July 27, an Election Commission (EC) member said Wednesday.

If so, the parliament is expected to be opened in September and a new government formed in October, Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, who is in charge of election management, said on Facebook.

The EC is scheduled to meet with 70 political parties on April 22 to solicit opinions on the new election date, according to Somchai.

The EC and the government might meet by the end of this month to discuss the date and the government will probably choose July 20 or 27, both Sundays, he said.

Multiple measures will be adopted to secure candidate registration so that there should be no reasons for the new election to be nullified like the Feb. 2 election, Somchai added.