User:Valentin Feldman/sandbox

Section: Government

Thailand categorizes itself as a constitutional monarchy, the king has little direct power under the constitution and exercises power through the National Assembly, the Council of Ministers, and the Courts in accordance with the 2017 constitution. The king, as the head of state, is the symbol of national identity and unity.

The head of government is the prime minister. The Prime Minister is elected by both houses of the National Assembly. Under section 151 of the constitution, members of the House of Representative comprising of at least one-fifth of the existing total Members of the house have the right to submit a vote of no-confidence of a single Minister or the Council fo Ministers en masse.

The National Assembly of Thailand, as the bicameral legislative branch of the government, consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives is the lower house of the National Assembly and consists of 500 members sitting for four years; 350 members are elected from a constituency basis and 150 members are elected from a party-list proportional representation. The Senate consists of 250 senators that hold a five-year term. Under section 107 of the 2017 constitution, senators are selected from professional and social groups, having the knowledge, expertise, and experience in various areas of society.

Section: Corruption

Corruption has plagued Thailand for much of its modern history, with both the private and government sectors partaking in various forms of corruption. Corruption is embedded within Thai society due to its history and culture, where patronage plays a huge role and those with connections thrive. Research shows that the cost of bureaucratic corruption alone in 2018 amounted up to a 100 billion Thai baht, with state officials at various levels embezzling funds from large and small governmental projects. As of 2018, Corruption Perception Index by Transparency International has ranked Thailand as the 99th least corrupt.

A year after the 2014 Thai coup d'état, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) declared a war on corruption. However, the junta was also entangled with various embarrassing corruption scandals itself.

Section: Political Parties and Elections: Voters The issue of voting rights in Thailand is addressed under Section 95 of the 2017 constitution. A person must have the following qualifications in order to vote:
 * 1) Must be of Thai nationality, those that have acquired citizenship through naturalisation must hold the Thai nationality for at least 5 years.
 * 2) Must not be less than 18 years of age on the day of election.
 * 3) Must have their name listed in the household register in the constituency for at least 90 days on the date of election.

2019 General Election

The 2019 General Election was held on 24 March 2019; it was the first election held in accordance with the new 2017 constitution and also the first election held since the 2014 coup. The election selected 500 members of the House of Representatives, in which 350 were elected from a constituency basis and 150 were elected from a party-list proportional representation. The National Assembly convened on 5 June to elect the new prime minister, in which the incumbent prime minister and coup leader Prayut Chan-o-cha won.