There seems to be agreement from those in the Pheu Thai camp and among political analysts that the party will likely unveil a third prime minister.
The first two candidates are Former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s youngest daughter, Paethongtarn, and property tycoon Srettha Thavisin.
Gossip has it that the likely person will be Chaikasem Nitisiri.
Who is Chaikasem?
Chaikasem, 74, is Pheu Thai’s chief strategist and the head of its democratic, justice and equality policy committee.
He was one of the party’s three PM candidates for the previous general election in 2019 after Chadchart Sittipunt and Sudarat Keyuraphan.
Both Paethongtarn and Srettha are not MP candidates for the upcoming election on May 14 but Chaikasem is a list-MP candidate.
Chaikasem was a former attorney general before he retired. He was later appointed as a former justice minister during the Yingluck administration in 2013.
He was one of the last ministers who stayed in their positions until the coup in 2014.
Before that, he was one of the 38 people named by the now-defunct Assets Scrutiny Committee for alleged involvement in the CTX-9000 bomb detector scandal at Suvarnabhumi Airport while he was serving as a member of the Airports of Thailand executive board in 2008.
Other people who were implicated were Thaksin, former transport minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit, and former permanent secretary for transport Srisuk Chandarangsu. The case was later dropped due to a lack of evidence.
Chaikasem was also nominated as a member of the Bank of Thailand board during the Somchai Wongsawat administration in 2008 but his name was later withdrawn due to criticism that he lacked a financial background.
He was later appointed as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2012, succeeding Navaporn Ruangsakul.