Move Forward And Pheu Thai Close To Announcing House Speakership Deal

Move Forward Party (MFP) and Pheu Thai have seemingly reached an agreement on which party will get to fill the House Speaker seat in the wake of the May 14 general election. Several local media outlets suggested that the parties will issue a statement on the matter on Thursday (June 22), clearing a key hurdle in their talks on forming a coalition government.

• Speaking with the media earlier today, Move Forward Secretary General Chaithawat Tulathon thanked Pheu Thai for the moderation in their stance, adding that core members of the two parties will meet this week to finalise the deal. According to Thai PBS, Pheu Thai have seemingly agreed for the MFP to take House Speakership in exchange for two Deputy House Speaker positions.
• Note that all agreements are tentative as it remains unclear if the MFP-led coalition will be able to form government. The bloc continues to struggle to garner enough support from the military-appointed Senate behind MFP leader Pita Limjaroenrat's PM bid, despite a landslide victory in the recent election to the lower house.
• This comes as the Election Commission endorsed all 500 MPs-elect today, noting that it would be unable to complete probes into all complaints within the 60 days it has to certify the results. Investigations are ongoing into complaints from 71 constituencies and these may take up to one year. In the meantime, the new parliament must convene within 15 days to elect its Speaker.