Charter Court says party-list seat election law calculation constitutional

21 Sept 06:51 Key points summarised by AI

The Constitutional Court unanimously affirmed the constitutionality of Article 128 of the MP Election Act, which governs the calculation of 150 party-list seats, deeming it consistent with Article 91 of the Constitution.
Despite upholding the law, the court's ruling did not explicitly endorse the Election Commission's (EC) specific formula for allocating party-list seats, a key point of contention.
The EC's formula aims to grant at least one party-list seat to smaller parties, potentially increasing the number of parties receiving seats from 16 to about 20, which would reduce expected seats for larger parties like Future Forward.
Future Forward immediately challenged the EC, arguing the court's decision does not validate the EC's formula and warning that its application could significantly diminish the pro-democracy camp's overall seat count.

Flooding persists in Bangkok and 22 provinces

Today 16:00 Key points summarised by AI

Persistent flooding continues across Bangkok and 22 Thai provinces, though water levels are gradually receding in many affected areas.
Over 604,000 families, impacting approximately 1.83 million people, are still grappling with the widespread flood conditions.
The national flood death toll has reached 80 since mid-September, with fatalities reported across various provinces.
Major regions like Pathum Thani, Ayutthaya, and Bangkok report significant numbers of affected households, with hundreds of thousands still in trouble.