Correct, Its a constitutional monarchy with v strong military input its NOT a democracy as most would understand it ..
You might not like it but then you or I dont matter, you think the EU is actually a democracy ? its not. eg EU parliament leaders are appointed not voted for & they make rules and Lord it over the other democratically elected countries Govs by non democratic means and diktat. The people of Europe get no say or vote at all on anything the EU itself does or decides to do. Half of Europe arnt even democracies they are either republics or constitutional Monarchies. Heck even the US is a Republic not a democracy. D word is thrown around like its some badge of honour but there are versions that differ hugely globally, dosnt mean good or effective government or improvement for the people or its culture, thats a western concept. Some are terribly corrupt such as Ukraine or stagnated like Japan or going backwards like the EU & theres plenty of failed democratic states ie Sri Lanka or Bangladesh .. Thailand is what it is and will be just fine without a fashionable "progressive" party like MF ..
TIT & its no biggie to cancel a party and ban its leaders etc. MF played the game but didnt prepare well enough, grease the right palms, was naive and dropped the ball. It won 38% which is not sufficient to form a government alone. Then it failed to mediate well enough to find support among the optional alternative parties to power share so ultimately lost the game. MF isnt the first party to be dissolved and wont be the last, nor do I care one jot. Seen the coups and various parties/leaders come and go and the last thing i want Thailand to become is just another globalist basket case to appease most foreigners idea of what they think is best.. . Personally I like the Thai version of management much better thank you warts and all & fell in love with the country many years ago, not its system.
I did find it very funny to see Pita crying like a child. Thats not a future leader of substance or Thailand, but then weak men do that a lot these days. Will he still be around in politics 10 years from now or buckle down to grind it out over the next few years ? like the Shinawatras etc did/have ? I highly doubt it..