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Three politicians linked to ousted premier
Thaksin Shinawatra who won seats in Thailand's recent election
have been disqualified for vote buying, the Election Commission
said Sunday.
The candidates from northeastern Buriram
province are members of the pro-Thaksin People Power Party (PPP),
which gained the most seats in December 23 elections, the first
since a military coup last year.
"They were accused of paying voters,"
Election Commission (EC) secretary general Suthiphon
Thaveehchaiyagarn told reporters.
"The commissioners have decided to
withdraw those three candidates' election rights for one year, and
will organise a re-run of the election," he added.
Suthiphon said the three disqualified
candidates will likely face legal action and would have to pay for
the by-elections in their province, which authorities have 30 days
to organise.
PPP will not be able to field any
candidates in the three by-elections, reducing their overall number
of parliamentary seats.
Three other PPP lawmakers will have to
re-stand for their seats in northeast Nakhon Ratchasima province,
after the EC ruled that there was possible electoral fraud, but not
enough evidence to disqualify the candidates.
PPP won 233 of the 480 seats up for grabs
in Thailand's lower house, just short of the majority needed to
government alone. They are expected to announce details of a
coalition government on Friday.
Their win was a blow to the military
junta, which had sought to rid Thailand of Thaksin's political
influence.
A slate of electoral fraud claims were
filed with the EC after the poll, and the commission is still
investigating the cases. Consequently more candidates could yet be
disqualified, shuffling the balance of power among the parties.
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