BANGKOK: Polls opened Sunday in a general election meant to restore democracy in Thailand, more than one year after the military ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra in a bloodless coup.
Voting began at 8:00 am (0100 GMT) and was set to close at 3:00 pm (0800 GMT), with unofficial results expected by midnight Sunday.
About 45.7 million Thais are eligible to vote in the first post-coup election, in which opinion polls predict neither of the two leading parties will win a clear majority of the 480 seats in parliament.
The Election Commission said voter turnout would likely reach 70 percent.
Frontrunners are the People Power Party, which was taken over by allies of Thaksin’s disbanded Thai Rak Thai party, and the Democrat Party, Thailand’s oldest political outfit.
While the polls are meant to restore civilian rule, observers question how free and fair they can be as more than one-third of the country, including Thaksin’s strongholds, is still under martial law.
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