For the 2026 election, what time does vote counting start after polls close for constituency MP ballots, party-list ballots, and referendum ballots? Anticipation mounts over which political party will secure first place.
On 8 February 2026, following the opening of polls for the general election of members of the House of Representatives and the constitutional referendum since 08:00, Thai citizens nationwide have been steadily exercising their voting rights throughout the day.
Voting booths open at 08:00, and the polls close at 17:00.
After the polls close, the Election Committee officers and staff will reopen the ballot boxes and immediately begin removing and counting the green ballots for constituency MPs, the pink ballots for party-list MPs, and the yellow referendum ballots.
During the counting process, votes will be tallied in the presence of observing citizens who can raise objections immediately if they have doubts about any ballot. Behind the scene, officials will mark the scores on a scoreboard one by one. Once counting is complete, the ballots and referendum votes will be totaled and sent to the central office for unofficial reporting to the public. The election night will be filled with anticipation over which political party and which constituency MP candidates will emerge victorious. After counting concludes, the next step is to await official certification of results by the Election Commission, which will confirm the official MPs.
