Wan Muhamad Noor Matha (PCC) Pichet Chuamuangphan (PTP) Paradorn Prissanananthakul (BTP) Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut (PP)

The elections were widely seen as a skewed race in which Prayut had an unfair advantage, as the 250 sitting members of the appointed Senate were to be selected by the junta.

In a move criticised on social media and interpreted as a political intervention, Vajiralongkorn issued a statement on the night prior to the election urging the public to support "good people" to prevent "chaos", quoting remarks by his father, the late king.

The NCPO, on taking power, declared its intention to hold general elections after carrying out reforms and promulgating a new constitution.

This would mean general elections might potentially not be held until early 2018, but a few days later distanced himself from the NRC's initiative after facing backlash for his remarks, saying "I'm not interested.

In response, former EC commissioner Somchai Srisutthiyakorn said the coronation doesn't affect the election and the previously promised 24 February date is still possible.

[19] As the entire sitting Senate will be appointed by the NCPO, commentators say that the change opens up the strong possibility that Prayut will become Thailand's next prime minister despite pro-Prayut parties being predicted to win fewer seats in the House of Representatives.

The order also exempted the ECT from complying with existing districting laws and allowing them to draw constituency boundaries in any manner they wished.

[citation needed] The move sparked outrage from the Pheu Thai and Democrat parties and the watchdog organisation Open Forum for Democracy Foundation.

[24] They argued the purpose of the delay was to enable the ECT to draw constituency boundaries that favoured Prayut's Palang Pracharath Party.

As the election laws and regulatory bodies were seen as stacked and biased against their favour, Pheu Thai split off into a network of several smaller affiliated parties in order to distribute their risk from legal intervention.

These parties were Thai Raksa Chart, Puea Chat (consisting of several United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship leaders), and Prachachart.

[31] On the night of 8 February, the day Princess Ubolratana was nominated as prime minister candidate by Thai Raksa Chart Party, her younger brother King Maha Vajiralongkorn made a televised announcement condemning her bid as "defy[ing] the nation's culture".

[34] The move was a huge blow to anti-Prayut camp, as Thaksin made a tactical decision to field two parties to win as many seats as possible.

[citation needed] The candidates for the main contending parties are Sudarat Keyuraphan, Chadchart Sittipunt and Chaikasem Nitisiri for Pheu Thai, Abhisit Vejjajiva for the Democrats, Prayut Chan-o-cha for Palang Pracharat, and Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit for Future Forward.

[citation needed] Note: The Rangsit University poll is often criticised for its alleged bias towards Prayut and Palang Pracharat.

Palang Pracharat is widely acknowledged as the political vehicle for Prayut to return as prime minister in a democratic regime.

[44][45][46] The Election Commission, which was appointed by the junta-appointed 2014 National Legislative Assembly, was widely criticized for perceived biases and incompetency.

Unofficial results, which typically would be known by the same night and announced next morning, were repeatedly delayed (for 44 days),[48] as the Election Committee revised the method of allocating votes, until the Palang Pracharat Party was able to form a coalition government.

[49][50][46][51] In addition, Human Rights Watch cited political repression, media censorship, unequal media access, the role of a military-appointed Senate in appointing an unelected prime minister (the junta leader), and lack of independence and impartiality of the Election Commission as factors preventing a free and fair election.

The Asian Network for Free Elections commented on the environment being tilted to benefit the junta, and the confused vote-counting process that created mistrust.

P-NET also stated that many local government officials used their authority to give an advantage to certain parties since this election had no volunteer observers.

[55][56] On election day, it became apparent that 1,500 ballots from New Zealand were misplaced during air cargo transfer and could not be delivered to counting centres in time to be considered valid.

[57][48] Partial preliminary results showed Pheu Thai and Palang Pracharath close in the two leading positions, followed by Future Forward.

[61] Party list seats would not be announced until the Election Commission officially endorsed the results, which was expected to happen near the deadline of 9 May, after the coronation of King Vajiralongkorn.

[62] Despite Pheu Thai winning the most seats, Palang Pracharath also claimed it was entitled to form government, as it won more votes.

[72][73] The new house convened on 24 May, and Prayut was voted prime minister by MPs from the 19-party coalition and all senators in a joint session on 5 June.