The Sahaphum Party (, sometimes translated as "United Land" or "Unionist Party") was a political party in Thailand. It was founded on 21 June 1957 by Sukich Nimmanheminda. Behind the scenes, the party was formed by Sanguan Chantharasakha to give parliamentary support to his half-brother Field Marshal

Sarit Thanarat Sarit Thanarat (also spelled Dhanarajata; ; born Siri (); 16 June 1908 – 8 December 1963) was a Thai politician and military commander. He served as commander-in-chief of the Royal Thai Army (from 1954) and as Minister of Defense during ...

in his power struggle with prime minister

Plaek Phibunsongkhram Plaek Phibunsongkhram; 14 July 1897 – 11 June 1964) was a Thai military officer and politician who served as the third prime minister of Thailand from 1938 to 1944 and again from 1948 to 1957. He rose to power as a leading member of the Kh ...

. Sanguan arranged a coalition of five parties, including Sahaphum and the Democrat Party that tried to topple Phibunsongkhram's government in a vote of confidence. Sahaphum Party particularly accused the government of failing to provide peace and order. The opposition could not disempower Phibunsongkhram by parliamentary means, so Sarit Thanarat launched a successful coup d'état on 16 September 1957. King Bhumibol Adulyadej appointed Sarit "Defender of Bangkok" and he ruled the country by means of a "revolutionary council". However, Sarit promised not to stay in power permanently and appointed Pote Sarasin a civilian prime minister. Sukich Nimmanheminda and Sanguan Chantharasakha held posts in Pote's cabinet (economy minister and deputy minister of industry, respectively). Sarit also called an election for December 1957. With 44 of 160 seats, the Sahaphum Party finished as the strongest party. Nevertheless, its performance was considered disappointing, as it was far from a majority and did badly in the major cities, not winning a single seat in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

Thonburi __NOTOC__ Thonburi () is an area of modern Bangkok. During the era of the Ayutthaya Kingdom, Kingdom of Ayutthaya, its location on the right (west) bank at the mouth of the Chao Phraya River had made it an important garrison town, which is ref ...

. Strongman Sarit quickly lost his interest in the party. Instead he founded the National Socialist Party as the new pro-government party a few days after the election. The National Socialist Party hoped to win over former members of Phibunsongkhram's Seri Manangkhasila Party who had been reelected as independents. At the same time, the Sahaphum Party had refused to accept former Seri Manangkhasila members in their ranks. Pote Sarasin resigned as prime minister, Sarit's right-hand man

Thanom Kittikachorn Thanom Kittikachorn (, , ; 11 August 1911 – 16 June 2004) was Prime Minister of Thailand from 1963 to 1973, military officer, who supported and initiated military coups and became Thailand's defence minister. He rose to power when he staged a ...

, vice-leader of the National Socialist Party, succeeded him. His cabinet included six members from the Sahaphum Party. During the following period, the party was divided between those who wanted to join Sarit in his new party and those who wanted to continue with the Sahaphum Party. 26 Sahaphum MPs resigned from the government benches in February 1958, protesting a cut in educational expenditure, while military spending was increased.

References

Defunct political parties in Thailand Political parties established in 1957 Political parties disestablished in 1958 1957 establishments in Thailand {{Thailand-party-stub