User:S maps/2020 Thai local elections

The 2020 Thai local elections took place on 20 December 2020 to elect presidents and councillors for the 76 provincial administrative organizations (PAOs) across Thailand. These elections were the first time all PAOs have been elected simultaneously, taking place in all 76 provinces other than Bangkok, due to its status as a special administrative region. They were the first local elections held after the 2014 Thai coup d'état and under the 2017 constitution imposed by the military government.

Background
Local government in Thailand on the provincial level is controlled by Provincial Administrative Organizations. PAOs are responsible for the distribution of a province's budget for local development in areas such as infrastructure, public utilities, and natural resource management. Historically, many of the PAO governors and councillors have been members of political dynasties or influential provincial figures elected through local connections.

335 people applied to run for PAO presidents and 8,186 for seats in PAO councils. While most candidates ran as independents or under non-partisan political groups, many were affiliated indirectly with national political parties, as the Election Commission prohibits parties from campaigning for candidates in PAO elections. Despite this, Pheu Thai and the Democrats ran candidates for POA president under their own party line in 25 and 2 provinces, respectively. Neither Palang Pracharath or Bhumjaithai ran any candidates under their own party line.

The election occurred during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and large anti-government protests. The dissolution of the progressive pro-democracy Future Forward Party by the Constitutional Court, one of the key causes of the protests, led to the formation of the Progressive Movement, an activist organization led by ex-Future-Forward leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit. The Progressive Movement backed 42 candidates for PAO president and over a thousand for PAO councils.