Thailand 2023 election

If the MFP is disbanded, the party's political energy is almost certain to re-emerge in an alternate, and likely more radical, form.

As controversy over his parole simmers, attention turns to what influence the controversial former leader will have over Thai politics.

Pita Limjaroenrat, the leader of the Move Forward Party, can rejoin Parliament – but more legal challenges loom.

Amid claims of preferential treatment, the Department of Corrections says that its refusal to refer to Thaksin Shinawatra as an "inmate" is standard practice.

With a reformist opposition gathering strength, Thai officials may see the current government as the last chance to gorge themselves at the public's expense.

Pita Limjaroenrat has been suspended from his duties as a member of Parliament pending a court ruling on whether he violated election law.

Residents of Thailand's capital have historically come down on the side of conservatism and reaction. They now loom as a force for reform.

The vote came shortly after former PM Thaksin Shinawatra, the spiritual leader of Srettha's Pheu Thai Party, returned to Thailand after 15 years in self-exile.

The marriage of convenience between Pheu Thai and the United Thai Nation Party reflects the stunning political realignment that has occurred since May's general election.

Despite the PM vote setback, the success of the Move Forward Party during the election has created a new dynamic in Thai politics – one that is likely to persist.

The decision will make the party more reliant on the support of the military-backed parties whose dominance it has long opposed.