52 parties submit party-list candidates, 32 name PM contenders

The Election Commission (EC) said the first day of party-list candidate registration on Sunday saw 52 parties submit their proportional representation slates, while 32 parties filed lists of prime ministerial candidates.

Sawaeng Boonmee, secretary-general of the EC Office, said the first day of registration for party-list and prime ministerial candidates at the Centara Life Government Complex Hotel proceeded smoothly.

He said all 52 parties submitted their party-list documents before 8.30am, after which officials checked and verified the paperwork and assigned candidacy numbers to each party through a lottery draw.

Sawaeng said 32 parties submitted their prime ministerial candidate lists, totalling 68 nominees, on the first day. The remaining parties can submit their lists until December 31, he added.

He said the 52 parties also submitted their policy platforms for the EC to assess whether the proposals are practical and whether parties have clearly explained the sources of funding for their promised policies.

Sawaeng said the EC Office would publish a policy handbook and mail it to 19 million households nationwide.

Section 57 scrutiny of campaign policies

Sawaeng said campaign policies must be reviewed under Section 57 of the Political Parties Act. He said the EC has set up a committee to scrutinise party policies, bringing together experts from multiple sectors to assure the public that proposals are feasible and do not violate the country’s fiscal and economic rules.

The working group includes representatives from:

• the Budget Bureau
• the Ministry of Finance
• the Ministry of Commerce
• the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC)
• the Bank of Thailand
• the Thai Chamber of Commerce
• the Federation of Thai Industries
• independent experts, including Veera Theeraphat, an economic specialist

Sawaeng said the EC would invite all members to take part in reviewing political parties’ policy proposals to ensure transparency before they are made public.

Election readiness, border situation and overseas voting

Sawaeng said the EC was confident it could hold the election nationwide. He expressed hope the Thai–Cambodian border situation would continue to improve so it would not affect the poll.

However, if the situation worsens, he said the EC may hold voting only at certain polling stations. He added that many voters in Thai–Cambodian border provinces had registered for advance voting outside their constituencies.

For overseas voting, Sawaeng said ballots for the general election would be sent back to Thailand for counting, while referendum ballots would be counted at Thai embassies abroad.

He added that political parties may campaign for the public to support their preferred referendum option only after the EC provides voters with basic information about the referendum.

In addition to voting in the election, voters will also be asked in a referendum whether they want a new constitution to be drafted.