Thai PM Frontrunner Gets Shot at Leadership After Six Years

In the middle of Thailand’s latest political crisis, conservative politician Anutin Charnvirakul chatted at a snazzy bar with the country’s second-richest man and shared a homemade lunch with a powerful former general. Pictures of both meetings splashed across social media.

The images — one with energy billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi, the other with ex-army chief Prawit Wongsuwan — served their purpose, signaling the businessman-turned-politician was about to make a long-desired bid for power.