Sudarat resigns as Thai Sang Thai leader, shifts to civic anti-graft push
Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan has resigned as leader of the Thai Sang Thai Party, saying she will move to the civic sector to campaign for constitutional amendments aimed at strengthening anti-corruption enforcement and public oversight.
Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan, prime ministerial candidate of the Thai Sang Thai Party, has announced her resignation as party leader, saying she will pivot to work in the civic sector to drive what she called “clean politics” and push for stronger anti-corruption mechanisms.
In a Facebook post dated February 12, 2026, Sudarat said she entered politics more than three decades ago with the Palang Dharma Party and has maintained her pro-democracy stance throughout her career.
She said she had served in multiple senior roles, including as a minister in four major ministries and as a parliamentary watchdog.
Sudarat argued that corruption remains a major cause of poverty and underdevelopment, and linked the issue to widespread public doubts about the conduct of the February 2026 election, including concerns over heavy spending and alleged misconduct by independent bodies such as the Election Commission (EC).
She said Thai Sang Thai has long maintained that public power should not exist only on election day, but should extend to the ability to scrutinise and hold wrongdoers accountable. Among proposals she cited were mechanisms enabling 50,000 citizens to initiate the removal of “deeply corrupt” politicians and certain independent agencies, as well as the creation of a “people’s-sector” anti-corruption body.
However, she said the party’s limited representation—two seats—made it difficult to advance reforms through parliament. According to unofficial results from the February 8 election, Thai Sang Thai appeared to win two seats—one constituency MP and one party-list MP.
Despite stepping down as leader, Sudarat said Thai Sang Thai would continue as a political platform focused on supporting “ordinary people” and would open the way for a new generation of leaders. She also invited those who are willing to “sacrifice” to use the party’s platform as a base to work for the country.
Sudarat said she would now focus on civic campaigning to gather support for section-by-section constitutional amendments, aimed at creating stronger public oversight and more effective anti-corruption enforcement.
