Democrats name candidates for central, eastern regions, plan new campaign tactics

Sathit Pitutecha, deputy Democrat leader, said on Tuesday that the list for the two regions will be finalised once the last four candidates are selected.

The deputy leader, who is in charge of the two regions, said the candidates come from various walks of life, including farmers and community leaders, young people and former MPs. He said the aim is to cover all communities, adding that an LGBTQ person will also contest in Constituency 3 of Pathum Thani.

Sathit admitted the contest in the two regions will be fierce, which is why he reckons the tactics need to be changed.

He said the Democrats will not focus on holding big rallies, but will instead use networks of its members to disseminate its policies among voters.

The party will use social media to try and reach as many voters as possible, while candidates will focus on door-to-door campaigns, he added.

Instead of setting a target for the party to win in the two regions, Sathit only said the party hopes to win more than it did in the 2019 election. In the last election, the Democrat Party only won eight seats in the two regions.

Sathit also said the Democrat Party was not afraid of the influence long-time politicians may have in the regions, because the May 14 election will be using a two-ballot system. Hence, he said, voters can cast their ballot for the party they like in party-list voting though they may not be familiar with new or lesser-known candidates.