Introducing Phairoj Lohsuntorn, a list MP from the Pheu Thai Party, aged 89, the oldest member of the 27th Parliament, poised to serve as the temporary Speaker. The 2026 election will mark his 10th term as an MP.
On 10 Mar 2026 GMT+7, following the Election Commission's (EC) certification of 396 constituency MPs on 25 Feb, MPs began receiving their certificates from 10 Mar to 6 Mar 2026 GMT+7. Reports from the first day of the 27th Parliament's MPs registration show a steady arrival of MPs throughout the day.
After the EC certified over 95% of the MP election results, the Secretariat of the House of Representatives coordinated with the Secretariat of the Cabinet for the Prime Minister to submit a royal request to convene the first parliamentary session within 15 days, as mandated by Section 121 of the Constitution. Meanwhile, the temporary Speaker will be appointed. On the day the new Speaker is elected, the temporary Speaker will be the MP with the highest seniority, who in the 27th House of Representatives is Phairoj Lohsuntorn, a list MP from the Pheu Thai Party, aged 90. On that day, he must be present in the parliamentary chamber.
Phairoj Lohsuntorn, nicknamed "Tia," was born on 24 Jan 1936 CE, now aged 90. He is the son of Mr. Chai and Mrs. Thongyip Lohsuntorn. Phairoj is married to Mrs. Rampai Lohsuntorn and has five children: Tuangrat, Sarintorn, Kittikorn, Natthaporn, and Thanathorn Lohsuntorn.
Phairoj first ran and was elected as an MP for Lampang under the Ekaphap Party in 1988. Later, he switched to the Samakkhitham Party for the March 1992 election, then to the Chart Pattana Party in September 1992. He was appointed Deputy Minister of Interior in Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai's government in 1994 and again in General Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's government in 1996. Subsequently, he served as Deputy Minister of Education in Chuan Leekpai's cabinet in 1998.
In 2001, Phairoj joined the Thai Rak Thai Party and was re-elected before being banned from politics for holding an executive position in the party. In 2019, he was elected as an MP for the eighth term with the Pheu Thai Party and was the oldest constituency MP elected at age 82.
In 2023 and 2026, Phairoj was elected as a list MP for the Pheu Thai Party, marking his ninth and tenth terms respectively. As the oldest MP in the 27th Parliament, he is set to serve as the temporary Speaker at the first parliamentary session to oversee the election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker. .
