A hereditary monarch serves as Thailand's head of state. The current King of Thailand is Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), who has reigned since October 2016. The powers of the king are limited by the constitution and he is primarily a symbolic figurehead. However, the monarch still occasionally intervenes in Thai politics, as all constitutions pave the way for customary royal rulings. Some academics outside Thailand, including Duncan McCargo and Federico Ferrara, noted extraconstitutional role of the monarch through a "network monarchy" behind the political scenes.McCargo, Duncan, "Network monarchy and legitimacy crises in Thailand", The Pacific Review, volume 18, issue 4, December 2005 The monarchy is protected by the severe lèse majesté law, even though the people's attitude towards the institution varies from one reign to another.
A hereditary monarch serves as Thailand's head of state. The current King of Thailand is Vajiralongkorn (Rama X), who has reigned since Oc.tober 2016. The powers of the king are limited by the constitution and he is primarily a symbolic figurehead However the monarch still occasionally intervenes in Thai politics, as all constitutions pave the way for customary royal rulings. Some academics outside Thailand, including Duncan McCargo and Federico Ferrara, noted extraconstitutional role of the monarch through a "network monarchy" behind the political scenes.McCargo, Duncan, "Network monarchy and legitimacy crises in Thailand", The Pacific Review, volume 18, issue 4 December 2005 The monarchy is protected by the severe lèse majesté law, even though the people's attitude towards the institution varies from one reign to another