Pheu Thai launches ‘reboot Thailand’ drive as 2026 election test for flagship policies

Pheu Thai to kick off its election campaign under the slogan “Reboot Thailand, Pheu Thai can deliver”, using the event scheduled on Tuesday to unveil all three of its prime ministerial candidates and signal a renewed push behind its flagship policies.

The line-up features Yodchanan Wongsawat, nephew of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and son of Yaowapa Wongsawat, who is being promoted as part of Pheu Thai’s new generation. Although an academic by background, he has previously contested an election in Chiang Mai.

He is joined by party leader Julapun Amornvivat, seen as a capable mid-generation politician with ministerial experience, and Suriya Juangroongruangkit, a former minister in several portfolios who now serves as Pheu Thai’s election director. Suriya’s inclusion is seen as partly the result of difficulties in recruiting high-profile economic technocrats from outside politics at this time.

All three candidates are expected to present their visions and outline the first batch of Pheu Thai’s policies at the campaign launch.

The event is also being treated as a final “strength check” of the red camp. Party insiders say that any key figures who fail to show up could see their names dropped from the candidate list, opening the way for “those with true commitment” to stand instead.

Flagship policies back at the centre of the fight

Beyond personalities, the centrepiece of the 2026 campaign will again be Pheu Thai’s flagship policies, with the party convinced that voters still primarily look to it for bold economic ideas – traditionally its strongest selling point.

The campaign will therefore showcase both policies implemented while Pheu Thai led the government and those it says were blocked or left unfinished, in a bid to convince voters the party can finish what it started if given another mandate.

Over the past two years under the governments of Srettha Thavisin and then Paetongtarn Shinawatra, many of Pheu Thai’s 2023 election pledges failed to fully take root, hampered by political constraints and bureaucratic resistance.

Key flagship policies ran into trouble, including:

• The 10,000-baht digital wallet scheme, dogged by disputes over funding and legality.
• The entertainment complex proposal, which stalled amid controversy over casino elements.
• The land bridge project, which has struggled to gain the necessary legal and regulatory backing.

The inability to deliver on these headline promises has fuelled doubts among core Pheu Thai supporters, who remember the Shinawatra era as a time when major pledges were rapidly implemented. Many now ask whether the party can still honour its promises.

As a result, the 2026 general election is being framed as a fresh test of whether Pheu Thai, if returned to power, can truly push through its announced policies.

Lessons from Srettha-Paetongtarn era reshape 2026 platform

Party strategists say lessons from the Srettha-Paetongtarn period (2023–2025) are being applied to the 2026 platform. Policies likened to “pushing a boulder up a mountain” – those requiring huge political capital – may be quietly shelved, while more emphasis will be placed on measures that ordinary people can tangibly feel.

Among the policies Pheu Thai plans to campaign on are:

• 20-baht electric train fares across the network: Pheu Thai is doubling down on its promise of a 20-baht flat fare on urban rail systems, built on the principle that public transport must be affordable and accessible, costing no more than 15% of the daily minimum wage. The party argues this would ease severe traffic congestion in Bangkok and help tackle pollution and PM2.5 caused by heavy private car use.
• Cracking down on call-centre gangs: The party points to the outgoing Pheu Thai-led government’s creation of an integrated online crime defence system, including a central coordination centre to receive complaints, freeze suspicious transactions, share intelligence and pursue cybercrime cases. Officials have shut down more than 600,000 mule accounts, issued Bank Case IDs for over 360,000 victims, and handled more than 1.6 million calls to the AOC 1441 hotline, as well as cooperating in cross-border scam crackdowns.
• Retirement lottery: The proposed retirement lottery, approved in principle by Cabinet on 16 July 2024, is set to return as a campaign plank. The framework envisages tickets priced at 50 baht, with individuals allowed to buy up to 3,000 baht per month, and a 1-million-baht first prize.
• Floods, landslides and early warning systems: Pheu Thai will highlight upgrades to disaster warnings, especially the cell broadcast alert system whose foundations were laid under the Paetongtarn government. The party says the system was developed and rolled out nationwide in less than a year and will be further improved to tackle flash floods and landslides.
• 30 baht healthcare everywhere: Building on the original “30 baht treats all diseases” scheme, Pheu Thai now proposes “30 baht treatment anywhere”, allowing universal coverage patients to receive care at any participating hospital without returning to their original registered facility. The plan includes expanding the gold-card scheme to cover comprehensive mental health services, so people can seek counselling or treatment at hospitals and clinics nationwide.
• Upgrading the gaming industry: With Thailand’s gaming industry valued at more than 30 billion baht, the party sees a major opportunity to develop the sector, supporting jobs and digital skills. Policy details are expected to focus on talent, content and platforms.

These and other initial planks form the backbone of Pheu Thai’s 2026 platform, with the party banking on revamped flagship policies to reignite momentum in the final stretch before the polls – and to prove that, under new leadership, it can still “reboot Thailand” and deliver for its red-shirt base.