The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.
Bloomberg
Thailand’s constitutional court upheld a move by the majority of lawmakers to change key electoral rules that benefit bigger parties, clearing the last legal challenge ahead of the next general election expected early next year.
The draft election bill requires parties to clinch more votes to get one of the 100 party-list seats in the 500-member House of Representatives in the national vote. The nine-member court found it did not breach the constitution, according to a statement.
The bill, which will determine how parliamentary seats will be allocated among parties and how many votes will be required to gain one party-list seat, is one of two key legislation needed for the election due to be called by March.
The top court said it also backed the draft bill’s legitimacy, which was called into question in a petition submitted in August by 105 lawmakers from smaller parties who stand to lose the most from the change.
The legislation passed the first parliamentary reading in February with rules that favored big parties by making it easier for a single party to gain a majority in the house.