Chusak Sirinil revealed that Pheu Thai is preparing to gather evidence concerning the appearance of barcodes on election ballots. He suggested filing complaints through the Ombudsman to have the issue forwarded to the Constitutional Court, emphasizing that the Election Commission does not have the authority to declare elections void.
On 13 Feb 2026 GMT+7, Chusak Sirinil, deputy leader of Pheu Thai, said before a meeting on the barcode issue that they had known about it for two days. Their legal team is gathering facts and evidence. He explained that previously, printed ballots included only secret codes indicating the polling station location, without any small marks. Before, it was only known where the ballot went, such as the precinct or district, but not who voted.
The addition of barcodes, as examined so far, may allow identification of which ballot stub the ballot came from, because ballots have stubs that are torn off and given to voters. If the ballot given to the voter has something indicating its originating stub, and voters must sign to receive the stub, it might be possible to link a voter to how they voted or which party they supported.
This matter has been under continuous consultation since yesterday, because if this is true, the secrecy of voting is compromised. Without secrecy, it raises the question of whether election laws violate the constitution, as a fundamental principle is that voting must be secret. There have been two past cases where elections were annulled: 1) when voting was not secret, and 2) when elections were not held simultaneously. They are studying this issue intensively and may take legal action if there is cause.
According to law, to request that an election be declared void, a complaint must be filed through the Ombudsman, which has been the route used previously. The Ombudsman then forwards the case to the Constitutional Court. The Election Commission cannot itself declare an election void; its role is only to order a re-election or a recount in problematic precincts.
Our party has a task force and legal team seriously consulting on this matter. If investigations confirm the facts and evidence clearly and legal action is deemed possible, the party will proceed accordingly. They are currently gathering evidence to ensure the process is thorough, focusing on this issue since yesterday and continuing today.