Thursday's PM Selection Up In Air, Speaker To Consult With Whips On Wednesday

Parliament Speaker Wan Muhamad Noor Matha announced that his legal team will consult with the three House and Senate whips on Wednesday to decide whether to postpone the second round of the PM vote currently slated for Thursday.

• Government formation is in limbo after several royalist parties rejected the possibility of entering any coalition with election front-runners MFP due to the party's push for amending the lese-majeste law. The MFP today also ruled out partnering with the PPRP or UTN, whose leaders led the 2014 military coup.
• Uncertainty around the imminent PM vote has increased as Thailand's Ombudsman asked the Constitutional Court today to review parliament's decision to disallow the re-nomination of MFP leader Pita Limjaroenrat for the second round of the PM vote and to suspend the PM selection process until it rules on the matter.
• Thai markets may see prolonged political uncertainty as a larger risk than any specific outcome, regardless of who gets to lead the government. To illustrate the point, local business tycoon Panlert Baiyoke said today that it doesn't matter which parties are in the coalition until government formation is finalised quickly.
• This comes amid tensions within the eight-party pro-democracy coalition, evidenced by comments from smaller parties. The Palang Sangkhom Mai party (1 MP) said that the coalition's MoU should be cancelled as the MFP no longer leads government formation. The Seri Ruam Thai party (1 MP) noted that the MFP is obstructing Pheu Thai's government formation and should stop interfering with the process.