Thai Court Rules Vote Can Be Delayed

Updated Jan. 24, 2014 8:24 a.m. ET

Antigovernment protesters fill a street during a march on Friday in Bangkok. Associated Press

BANGKOK—Thailand’s Constitutional Court ruled on Friday that contentious elections set for February 2 can be postponed, adding further pressure on Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s government to delay the vote, as antigovernment protests continue.
Ms. Yingluck has said the elections should be held as soon as possible to resolve the country’s political conflicts and that the country’s laws don’t allow the vote to be postponed. Holding early elections would likely benefit the prime minister and her ruling Pheu Thai party, which would likely win due to strong support in Thailand’s vote-rich north and northeast regions.
In recent weeks, tens of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Bangkok to demand Ms. Yingluck suspend the vote and resign so that an unelected council can take over. The protesters, led by a former legislator with the opposition Democrat Party, want to see sweeping reforms introduced to check the power of democratically-elected populist politicians, such as Ms. Yingluck and her elder brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted as the country’s leader in a military coup in 2006. The protesters have said they would like to delay elections until reforms are implemented.
Thailand’s independent Election Commission asked the court to rule on whether the vote can be delayed to prevent a further escalation of the unrest that so far has killed nine people and left dozens injured.
This week, Ms. Yingluck’s government declared a state of emergency to try to end demonstrations that still block large parts of downtown Bangkok to traffic.
The court said Thailand’s constitution doesn’t prohibit postponing an election in the case of an emergency or if there are other obstructions to the polls going ahead safely. It said that if the Election Commission considers it necessary to postpone the ballot, it should propose a delay to the government, which could then seek a royal decree to postpone the vote or set a new date.
“If there are events that will lead to damage or harm to the country…the Election Commission has the right to inform the prime minister or the cabinet and propose a new election date,” the Constitutional Court, which rules on political and constitutional matters, said.
Varathep Rattanakorn, a minister in the prime minister’s office, told local media that the government will have to study the court’s verdict on delaying the election to determine whether it was an order or a suggestion.
But Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, one of Thailand’s five election commissioners, told reporters in southern Thailand, where he was meeting with local officials, that the commission could meet with the government on Monday. He said he expects to government to seek a new royal decree by Tuesday to scrub the Feb. 2 election date.
The government’s original plan to hold an election Feb. 2 had appeared to be foundering. So far, 28 electoral districts in the south of the country have failed to register candidates after antigovernment protesters blockaded candidate-registration centers. That means the election wouldn’t fill the 95% of the 500-seat parliament required by law to reopen the legislature, the Election Commission has said. Ms. Yingluck dissolved the lower house of parliament in December due to the protests.
The opposition Democrat Party also is boycotting the vote to erode the legitimacy of the election.
The Election Commission earlier suggested May 4 as an alternative election date. Delaying the vote could allow Thailand’s rival political parties to find a solution to ensure the polls can go ahead, the Election Commission has said, potentially enabling the Democrat Party to participate.
Suthep Thaugsuban, leader of the antigovernment protesters, has vowed to disrupt the Feb. 2 election, insisting reforms to eliminate alleged vote-buying and other forms of corruption be implemented before any election takes place. “This election will never happen because we the people don’t want it,” Mr. Suthep said on Thursday night.
Write to Warangkana Chomchuen at warangkana.chomchuen@wsj.com

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