The Election Commission emphasizes the prohibition on using devices to photograph ballots after voting. Violators face imprisonment. Deliberate damage to ballots carries a severe penalty of up to 5 years in prison and a 10-year voting rights revocation by court order.
On 1 Mar 2026 GMT+7, the Office of the Election Commission announced prohibitions and penalties for the re-election of members of parliament at Polling Station 6, Village No. 4, Tha Wang Thong Subdistrict, Mueang Phayao District, Phayao Province (Constituency 1) on Sunday, 1 Mar 2026 GMT+7. This re-election includes both constituency and party list voting, held at the canteen of Ban Sala School from 08:00 to 17:00. To ensure orderly elections, the Commission highlighted key prohibitions and penalties under the Organic Act on the Election of Members of the House of Representatives B.E. 2561 (2018) and its amendments as follows.
1. Election officials at polling stations are public officers under the Penal Code. Anyone who resists, obstructs, or disobeys lawful orders from these officials may be punished under Section 138 with imprisonment up to one year, a fine up to 20,000 baht, or both. If the act involves violence or threats of violence, the penalty increases to imprisonment up to two years, a fine up to 40,000 baht, or both.
2. Voters are prohibited from using any device or equipment to photograph their marked ballots. They are also forbidden from showing their completed ballots to others to reveal how they voted. Violators face penalties of imprisonment up to one year, a fine up to 20,000 baht, or both.
3. Voters must not use ballots other than those issued by authorized election officials for voting. Taking ballots out of the polling station is prohibited. Deliberately marking ballots to make them identifiable is also forbidden. Violations carry imprisonment from one to five years, fines ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 baht, or both, and a court order revoking voting rights for 10 years.
4. Anyone who intentionally damages or spoils ballots, makes ballots invalid, or alters spoiled ballots to make them valid, faces imprisonment of up to five years, fines up to 100,000 baht, and a court-ordered revocation of voting rights for 10 years.