Sunday, October 21, 2018: It can be said that Suthep Thaugsuban was in “the lion’s den” today. Actually, he was in Khon Kaen, a northeastern political hotbed where many certainly did not appreciate his presence. About 300 people took part in a forum at a hotel to discuss the party he co-founded, and which he called “Genuinely the people’s party.”

Suthep, who led massive street protests that culminated in the downfall of the Yingluck government in 2014, insisted that the forum was not a political gathering, thereby lawful. “I came to listen to what northeastern people want from politicians, and I’m encouraged to know that a lot of people want true representatives, not MPs who work for anyone in particular,” he said.

 Suthep did not say how many seats his Action Coalition for Thailand Party expects to win in the Pheu Thai-dominated region, however.