During last year's elections which helped Thaksin's party capture 377 of 500 seats in the lower house of parliament, the Democrat Party lost one quarter of its seats, leaving it only 96.
"The Democrats were badly beaten in the election last year and they have not recovered," one Western diplomat said, asking not to be named.
"They also have a money problem," the envoy said, stressing that the party founded by the telecoms tycoon Thaksin had easily outspent the Democrats in election campaigns.
After last Sunday's polls, the Thai Rak Thai party is expected to win some 460 seats. The Election Commission has yet to release official results.
Ruengrawee was skeptical whether the opposition party that ruled Thailand during much of the 1990s was ready for government again.
"Even after this crisis, the party did not emerge as a strong, credible party," she said. "I'm not sure if they are ready to run the country."
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