Majority of Thais approve new Charter draft, official result set Aug 10

BANGKOK, August 8 (TNA) - The Election Commission of Thailand (EC) has reported that the country's new Constitution draft has been approved by the majority of eligible voters and the official result should be known by August 10. EC announced on Sunday evening, hours after the closure of ballot boxes nationwide, that some 94 per cent of the ballots had been counted and preliminary results showed 61.40 per cent of the voters approved the new Charter draft, while 38.60 per cent rejected it. Regarding an additional question in the ballot papers about how voters will decide on a proposal for appointed senators to join the House of Representatives in the voting process to elect a Thai prime minister during a five-year transitional period, 58.11 per cent of the voters approved it, while 41.89 per cent voted against it. Meanwhile, EC has reported 26 million valid ballot papers and over 860,000 voided ballot cards so far. Out of 50.5 million eligible voters in Thailand, voters' turnout in Sunday’s referendum was recorded at 27,623,136 or 58 per cent, 1 per cent higher than the turnout in the previous referendum on the 2007 Charter draft. Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-ocha is scheduled to convene a meeting with the agencies concerned on Monday to discuss next procedures, in preparation for a joint meeting between his Cabinet and the Thai army-led National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) on August 10, when the official result of the August 7 referendum is also expected to be public reported. (TNA)