They met for two hours but adjourned without making progress,
saying "legal issues" had to be clarified and they would meet again
on Friday.
Sunday's poll has been challenged by the main opposition Democrat
Party, which refused to take part, and the Election Commission is
already investigating possible campaigning irregularities in a
long-running political conflict that shows no sign of ending.
The election would likely return caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck
Shinawatra to power if it is not annulled but, whatever the result,
it will not change the dysfunctional status quo after eight years of
polarization and turmoil.
Consumer confidence, which reflects views on the economy, job
opportunities and future income, hit a 26-month low in January, a
university survey released on Thursday showed.
"Our meeting yielded only one conclusion today: that those who were
not able to vote on January 26 and February 2 in constituencies
where there were problems have not lost their right to vote,"
commission official Somchai Srisutthiyakorn told reporters.
"Other issues were raised in today's meeting but we have not yet
reached a conclusion due to legal issues that need to be clarified."
Voter turnout on Sunday was 47.7 percent, the commission said, with
20.5 million people turning up to vote out of a total of 43 million
eligible voters. The data excludes voters in nine provinces where
voting could not take place.
Polls were disrupted in 18 percent of constituencies, 69 out of 375,
nationwide, affecting 18 out of 77 provinces.
MORE RALLIES AHEAD
Anti-government protests are still blocking parts of Bangkok in the
latest round of an eight-year dispute that broadly pits Bangkok's
middle class, southern Thais and the royalist establishment against
the mostly poor, rural supporters of Yingluck and her brother,
ousted former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.
Ten people have been killed in sporadic bursts of violence, although
Bangkok has been calm since the vote. The number of protesters on
the streets has dwindled, for now, but their three-month campaign
has drawn as many as 200,000 on big marches and rallies, more of
which are expected.
[to top of second column] |
The protests are having an impact on the economy, the tourism sector
in particular with arrivals in Bangkok sharply down.
"People are very concerned about their future," Thanavath
Phonvichai, an economics professor at the University of the Thai
Chamber of Commerce, told a news conference for the release of the
university's latest confidence survey.
"The economy has not reached its bottom yet."
The demonstrators say Yingluck is Thaksin's puppet and the costly
giveaways that won his parties every election since 2001 are
tantamount to vote-buying using taxpayers' money.
They say Thaksin's new political order is tainted by graft and
cronyism and want an appointed "people's council" to replace
Yingluck and overhaul a political system hijacked by her brother,
who lives in exile to avoid a jail term for graft.
Protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban faces charges of murder related to
violence in 2010 when, as deputy prime minister, he sent in troops
to crush protests by "red shirt" supporters of Thaksin. More than 90
people were killed.
Suthep was to appear in court on Thursday in that case, but he
failed to turn up for a second time. He was given another seven days
to appear.
The court initially requested Suthep to appear on December 12 last
year but rescheduled the hearing for six weeks later, citing his
lack of availability due to his anti-government campaign.
(Additional reporting by Boontiwa Wichakul;
writing by Nick Macfie;
editing by Martin Petty and Robert Birsel)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
|