Pheu Thai: Election one of the dirtiest ever in Thai politics

Pheu Thai Party secretary-general Phumtham Wechayachai on Friday lambasted the Election Commission for its handling of the general election, which he termed "one of the dirtiest in Thai politics".

The Pheu Thai deal-maker, on his Facebook account, accused the EC of holding an "disorganised" election with confusing results which called into question the credibility and efficiency of the poll organising agency.

The election was held for the purpose of prolonging the power of "a person" to continue in the premiership, he said, a clear reference to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha.

Opposition politicians were intimidated and vote buying was rampant before polling day, he said.

"The election in 2019 will be remembered in history, like the election in 1957, as one of the dirtiest elections in Thai politics," he wrote.

The EC remains under fire for its handling of the election results. The centre of the controversy is the voter turnout, which has jumped by almost 4.5 million ballots since the figures announced on election day and the latest statistics announced on Thursday.

Krit Urwongse, deputy secretary-general of the Election Commission, said on Thursday the discrepancies between the number of voters and of the number of ballots at some polling stations could have been the result of voters registering but not waiting to get the ballot papers from officials.

The unofficial results on Thursday after all ballots were counted still showed Pheu Thai the winner with 137 seats, leading second-placed arch rival Palang Pracharath by 19 seats.