bad seven times, Good Seven Times!

Thais have begun voting in what is expected to be a tight general election, one that could prove pivotal to the future of the kingdom.

There are 40 parties competing to fill the office of prime minister and 500 seats in the House of Representatives, according to the Thai Election Commission website. There are 1.2 million election workers and more than 94,000 polling stations for the country's estimated 47 million eligible voters to cast ballots, the website said.

Who wins Sunday's vote is far less important geopolitically than whether or not the results are accepted, according to Ernest Bower, Southeast Asia program director for the Center for Strategic & International Studies.

Yingluck Shinawatra, the head of the Pheu Thai party and sister of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, is expected by pollsters to have an edge. She is standing against Abhisit Vejjajiva, the incumbent Prime Minister and leader of the Democrat party.

Victory for the Pheu Thai party would make Yingluck the country's first female premier.

The election will be Thailand's 26th since it became a democracy in 1932, before which it was an absolute monarchy.

The country has been governed under 17 constitutions and has had 18 military coups (both actual and attempted).

Investment ideas: Thai stocks = as cash will probably flood the domestic economy following the general election as the new government will speed up the implementation of the populist policies to please its supporters. All political parties have similar campaigns with more spending to spur economic growth.

If the election is accepted, then Buy Thai banks, property companies and tourism-related stocks.  Dusit Medical Services Pcl, the nation’s biggest private hospital operator, Minor International Pcl, which runs the largest hotel and fast-food chains, and. Pruksa Real Estate Pcl, the No. 1 residential property developer by sales. All could be of interest!