Thailand’s former transport minister, Chadchart Sittipunt, is set to be confirmed as Bangkok’s new governor after a decisive win in the election on Sunday.
This is the first gubernatorial election in the Thai capital city since 2013.
Some 31 candidates registered for the Bangkok governor election, with independent candidate Chadchart, 55, winning a record of over 1.3 million votes.
He won so far ahead of his nearest rivals who both captured about 250,000 votes, unofficial results from the Office of Election Commission of Bangkok showed.
Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Monday congratulated Chadchart, government spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said.
Prayut assured Chadchart that the government would give him and his team all due support for the development of Bangkok, according to the spokesperson.
Chadchart’s competitors conceded defeat on Sunday, but it could take up to 30 days before the election commission declared official results according to the country’s election procedure.
“Once the election commission makes the announcement, I will be the governor for everyone,’’ Chadchart said on Sunday. (Xinhua/NAN)