2008 Bangkok gubernatorial election

The eighth gubernatorial election for the city of Bangkok, Thailand, was held on 5 October 2008. The election was won by the incumbent Governor Apirak Kosayothin, placing him in his second consecutive four-year term in office, winning 45.93 percent of the vote. Of a total of 4,087,329 eligible voters, 2,214,320 voted, giving a turnout rate of 54.18 percent, lower than the 70 percent target expected by the Election Committee.

Sixteen candidates contested the election. Mr Apirak, candidate for the opposition Democrat Party, was seen as the favourite. Other candidates included Chuwit Kamolvisit, a former massage parlour businessman who also ran in the 2004 election, Prapas Chongsa-nguan, former governor of the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand and candidate for the People's Power Party, Kriengsak Chareonwongsak, an academic and professor in business administration, and Leena Jangjanja, a businesswoman and lawyer who ran in the previous election and the 2006 senate election.

The sixth elected governor of Bangkok, Mr Apirak is the second to be elected to a second term, after Chamlong Srimuang, governor from 1985–1992, who was incidentally arrested at a polling station early on the election day, on charges of insurrection due to his role as leader of the People's Alliance for Democracy, a group which has staged protests and occupied Government House since August.

Campaign

Mr Apirak's four-year term as governor ended on 28 August 2008. Applications for the post were accepted from 1 to 5 September, and the official list of candidates was announced on 11 September. Campaigning included public speeches by candidates, television interviews, campaign trucks announcing messages through loudspeakers, and most noticeably, a multitude of campaign posters erected on the pavements, some of which fell over and injured pedestrians and motorcyclists.

The more unusual campaigning stunts included Mrs Leena's bathing in a canal to reflect the local population's experiences, which ended tragically when her campaign manager drowned. Nearer to the election day, Mr Chuwit caused headline news by punching and kicking a television journalist after an interview.

Mr Chuwit also filed complaints against Mr Apirak, claiming that the appearance of Mr Apirak's name on the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's election publicity posters violated electoral law. The case was accepted by the Bangkok Election Committee, but a final ruling by the Election Commission would not be heard until after the election.

Polling and results

Polling was organised by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration under the supervision of the Bangkok Election Commission, with a total budget of over 154 million baht. Voting took place from 08:00 to 15:00 on 5 October at 6,337 polling stations across the fifty districts of the city.

Exit polls by Assumption and Suan Dusit Rajabhat Universities indicated that Mr Apirak had won 44 to 52 percent of the vote by the time the polling stations closed. The unofficial results, to be submitted to the Election Commission for approval, were announced by the Bangkok City Clerk on midnight.

  Summary of Bangkok gubernatorial election results, 2008

№	Candidate	Affiliation	Votes	%	Rank
1	Kittisak Thirawisit	Independent	2,102	0.10	9
2	Kriengsak Chareonwongsak	Independent	260,051	12.05	4
3	Metta Temchamnarn	Metta Tham Group	2,105	0.10	8
4	Warawut Thanangkorn	Independent	2,771	0.13	7
5	Apirak Kosayodhin	Democrat Party	991,018	45.93	1
6	Sumet Tanthanasirikul	Krung Thep Phatthana Team	1,078	0.05	11
7	Leena Jungjanja	Independent	6,267	0.29	5
8	Chuwit Kamolvisit	Independent	340,616	15.79	3
9	Wittaya Jangkobpattana	Independent	3,759	0.17	6
10	Prapas Chongsa-nguan	People's Power Party	543,488	25.19	2
11	Popsak Panseethong	Independent	811	0.04	13
12	Toranee Rithee-thamdamrong	Independent	852	0.04	12
13	Udom Viboonteppachat	Independent	617	0.03	14
14	Vachiraporn Aayooyuen	Public Party (Satharanachon)	1,140	0.05	10
15	Somchai Paiboon	Independent	503	0.02	15
16	Nipon Simprayoon	Independent	421	0.02	16
Total			2,157,599	100
"No vote" ballots			37,345
Voided ballots			19,376
Total turnout			2,214,320

References

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• Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (5 October 2008), ผลการเลือกตั้งผู้ว่าราชการกรุงเทพมหานคร 5 ต.ค. 51 (อย่างไม่เป็นทางการ) ณ เวลา 23.31 น., Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, retrieved 2008-10-05. (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bLnLZLxc). Template:Th icon.
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• Sinlapalavan, Budsarakham; Kongdejsakda, Kornwika (26 September 2008), Catastrophe!, The Nation, retrieved 2008-10-07.
• Thai News Agency (5 October 2008), Exit Polls: Former Bangkok governor Apirak re-elected, Thai News Agency, retrieved 2008-10-06.
• Wancharoen, Supoj; Glahan, Surasak (2 October 2008), Apirak faces allegations of unfair campaigning, Bangkok Post, retrieved 2008-10-06. (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bNKZxGCf).
• Wong-Anan, Nopporn (2 October 2008), Bangkok governor hopeful punches TV host, Reuters, retrieved 2008-10-07.