Acting Thai PM seeks to dissolve lower house for general election

BANGKOK -- Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai announced on Wednesday that his caretaker government has moved to dissolve the lower house of parliament, potentially leading to an early general election.

Speaking to reporters at the government house, Phumtham confirmed that a decree to disband the House of Representatives was submitted to King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Tuesday and now awaits royal approval.

Given ongoing challenges, Phumtham said restoring political stability was essential to prevent further economic decline, stressing that the appropriate course of action would be to return decision-making authority to the electorate after discussions with the legal team.

"In my capacity as acting prime minister, I have reviewed all these opinions thoroughly and decided to report the situation to the King for his consideration in resolving the problem in accordance with the democratic process under the constitution," he said.

The move to seek parliament dissolution came as the ruling Pheu Thai Party lost its majority in the lower house and is struggling to form a new government following a constitutional court ruling that removed Paetongtarn Shinawatra from her premiership over ethics violations last week.

The Southeast Asian country's main opposition, the People's Party, on Wednesday decided to back Bhumjaithai Party leader Anutin Charnvirakul as the next prime minister in anticipation of the parliamentary vote.

The Pheu Thai Party had sought support from the People's Party, which controls nearly a third of lower house seats, in a bid to nominate its only remaining prime ministerial candidate, Chaikasem Nitisiri.