The Senate's Political Development Committee visited the Election Commission to seek clarity on the combined election and referendum, fearing that public confusion could lead to low voter turnout.
On 28 Jan 2026, Mr. Noraset Prachayakorn, Chairman of the Senate Political Development Committee, led a delegation to meet the Election Commission to discuss preparations for the House of Representatives election and constitutional referendum scheduled for 8 February. This marks the first time in history that both events are held concurrently. They expressed concern that the complex procedures and insufficient public awareness could significantly hinder achieving the target voter turnout.
The committee submitted five main inquiries: the approach to managing disenfranchisement due to the lack of advance or postal voting for the referendum; solutions for voters residing abroad; proposals to exclude observer-related expenses from campaign costs to allow comprehensive monitoring at all polling stations; measures to keep spoiled ballots below 3%; and reducing election officials' discretionary power to prevent bias. They also discussed final-stage strategies to encourage higher voter turnout than the 2023 election.
Mr. Noraset emphasized that the Election Commission must implement a clear communication plan in the remaining time to reassure the public that officials will perform their duties impartially and without affecting the vote count of any political party.