Lawmakers to vote to elect new PM today

The battleground of Thai politics will shift from the streets to Parliament, as lawmakers prepare to vote today on a new prime minister.

The Democrat Party, which has not been in power for eight years, is confident it has the support of enough lawmakers to elect its Oxford-educated leader, Abhisit Vejjajiva, as the country's new prime minister.

But parties loyal to the legacy of disgraced former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra also claim to have enough votes to name their candidate, former national police chief Pracha Promnok, to the top spot.