🇹🇭 'Thais will prove that the ballot is stronger than the bullet'

There would be social as well as economic benefits to the policy, said Ratchada. “Sex toys are useful because they could lead to a decrease in prostitution as well as divorce due to a mismatch of sexual libido, and sex-related crimes.”

While products were brought into the country illegally, she added, there was no quality control, resulting in some short-circuiting.

The Democrat party supports establishing a sex toy industry in Thailand and would legalise the items for people aged 18 years and over.

Pheu Thai, which leads in most pre-poll surveys, will not form an alliance with the military-backed conservative parties headed by former coup-leaders, said Srettha Thavisin, a high-profile former real estate mogul running as one of the party’s three prime ministerial candidates. The party is backed by ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra, an enduring yet polarizing figure in Thai politics whose term was marked by allegations of corruption.

A power struggle is intensifying ahead of the May 14 general election, in which more than 52 million Thai voters will elect 500 members of the House of Representatives. While Pheu Thai is targeting to win 310 seats — from 136 in 2019 — it will need the support of at least 376 lawmakers to tilt the scale in an electoral system that favors the establishment.

While populist policies in the Thaksin years were frowned upon by his adversaries, all of the parties contesting this election are taking a populist approach, brandishing a range of handouts and giveaways. This election shows that the ideology of the Thaksin side has become entrenched.

Thai society has been changing in the 21st century. Those who were left behind have gotten a chance to have their say, and they have been speaking up each time a poll has taken place. Yet Thailand's powers-that-be will not let change and adjustment take place, preferring the restoration and preservation of the old order that prevailed in the second half of the last century. This is why pro-Thaksin parties have won all elections since 2001, with Pheu Thai on track to extend this record.

Conversely, if the military, aligned with the king, thwart the popular will—via the courts, an outright coup, or other measures—it would be a disaster. It would further the region’s political regression, including in Myanmar, and, if past is prologue, likely spark violence in Bangkok. It would alienate young Thais, possibly causing many to emigrate. What’s more, a coup would strike a severe blow to the U.S.-Thailand relationship at a time of great regional instability, and it would likely push Bangkok even closer to Beijing, a relationship that strengthened after the 2014 coup. The United States would be forced by law to impose some sanctions on treaty ally Thailand, possibly sealing a situation in which China is not only Thailand’s dominant economic partner but also its top strategic partner.

Jatuporn Prompan, a longtime ally of Mr. Thaksin’s, now estranged, said the candidacy of his daughter is a reflection of “how Mr. Thaksin thinks, that he doesn’t trust anyone but his family.”

“She will face tremendous pressure from the opposition, be scrutinized and criticized,” Mr. Jatuporn said. “Mr. Thaksin shouldn’t do this to his children.”

It remains unclear if Ms. Paetongtarn, a deputy chief executive of a family-run hotel management company, will ultimately get the top job. Pheu Thai, the party founded by her father, has named two other candidates for prime minister in addition to her: a real estate mogul and a former attorney general.