A compromise could be on the horizon between the House of Representatives and the Senate on the criteria for a referendum on amending the constitution.
Hopes that the two bodies could meet halfway brightened on Thursday after a meeting of the joint House-Senate committee vetting the charter referendum bill.
Previously the Lower House stood firm on its stance that a simple majority of participating voters would be enough to pass a referendum on the government’s plan to rewrite of the constitution. The Upper House favours a double majority, meaning at least 50% of registered voters must cast ballots and at least 50% of those votes must be in favour for the referendum to pass.
Nikorn Chamnong, chief strategist of the coalition Chartthaipattana Party, in his capacity as the secretary to the joint committee, has proposed a “one and a half layer” majority, somewhere between a simple majority and a double majority.
Even though both sides still affirmed their own stance about the ideal majority, they appeared open to his proposal, he said, referring to the MPs and senators on the committee.
No decision was reached on Thursday on the proposed halfway majority, in which more than half of the eligible voters is required to proceed with a referendum. Then the majority of votes cast by those participating eligible voters would be required to pass the referendum, he said.
Mr Nikorn has also proposed that the referendum be conducted by post as a way of saving the money on the cost of staging a referendum, estimated at 3 billion baht,
Thailand Post and the Election Commission (EC) will then be invited to the committee’s meeting on Nov 20 to discuss the idea in detail.
A postal vote, he said, would likely result in more eligible voters taking part, considering its convenience.
Both senators and MPs on the committee said they wanted to first hear from Thailand Post before saying whether they agree with the idea or not, said Mr Nikorn.
“Personally, I think the double majority requirement is just too much and now that the halfway option has been proposed, the Senate side in particular [appeared open to it](#) when listing to the proposal,” he added.
Senator Phisit Aphiwatthanaphong, a member of the committee, said he found the proposal for a postal vote interesting.
“If Thailand Post says it’s ready to facilitate a postal referendum, it will be possible for us to agree to the referendum majority that might be less than the double majority. It could be the proposed halfway option,” he said.
Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, deputy leader of the United Thai Nation Party, said he agreed with both the halfway option and the postal referendum.
Prime Minister’s Office Minister Chousak Sirinil, the Pheu Thai Party’s legal expert, said his party stood firm on the Lower House’s simple majority choice.