Pita Limjaroenrat BANGKOK, July 13 (BBC): The reformer who won Thailand's election has failed to win enough votes in parliament to become prime minister. Pita Limjaroenrat swept to victory in May as voters rejected nearly a decade of conservative military rule.
He and his allies have a lower house majority but could not win over the 249-seat senate, all appointed by a previous military government. Mr Pita also faces last-minute legal challenges which could yet disqualify him. He denies breaking election rules.
He told reporters he accepted the result of the first round of voting, but added: "I am not giving up." Ahead of the parliamentary vote, Mr Pita, the leader of the progressive Move Forward party, had said he was confident.
"I will try my best in showing my vision and explaining all senator's doubts," he said. Mr Pita also said there were attempts to "block the majority government of the people from getting to run the country in various ways".
"This is quite normal for the path to power in our country... I am encouraged and hopeful to fix things as they come until the dream of mine and the people can be reached," he told the Thai Rath TV channel.
Apart from parliamentary numbers stacked against him, Mr Pita appeared to face another blow to his ambitions on Wednesday when Thailand's notoriously conservative Constitutional Court accepted a recommendation from the Election Commission that he be disqualified.
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