Pheu Thai faces EC scrutiny over ‘nine millionaires a day’ campaign policy

The “nine new millionaires a day” policy of Pheu Thai has become a hot topic, raising questions, particularly regarding its legal compliance. 

After the Election Commission (EC) opened the submission process for political parties to file details of policies to be used in advertising for the 2026 general election for members of the House of Representatives, under Section 57 of the Organic Act on Political Parties BE 2560 (2017)—which empowers the EC to verify that such policies are complete and legally compliant—parties were required to submit their policies to the EC by January 18, 2026.

A source from the EC recently told Thansettakij that, under the Organic Act on Political Parties, Section 57 states that political parties must take into account the views of their party branches and regional representatives when setting policies for election advertising. Any policy involving expenditure must include at least the following details:

• The budget required and the source of the funds to be used.
• The cost-effectiveness and benefits of implementing the policy.
• The potential impacts and risks associated with the policy’s implementation.

If a political party fails to provide these details as required, the EC must ensure that they are submitted correctly within the specified timeframe.

Section 121 stipulates that any political party not complying with the EC’s directive under Section 57, Paragraph 2, or Section 77, Paragraph 2, shall be subject to a fine of up to 500,000 baht, with an additional fine of 10,000 baht per day for each day of non-compliance.

Previously, the Election Commission (EC) issued a notification to the New Alternative Party. The party’s secretary-general and prime ministerial candidate, Mongkolkit Suksintharanon, submitted 32 additional policies to the EC after the filing deadline, which the EC said constituted non-compliance with the EC’s 2025 announcement on the criteria and procedures for verifying political party policies that involve expenditure and are used for election campaigning.

Under Clause 4 of that announcement, political parties must report such policies to the Election Commission at least 20 days before the date of the general election.