Introducing Mallika Jiraphanwanich, who has risen to become the First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives. With a strong track record, she has secured a seat as a Bhumjaithai Party MP for four consecutive terms. She is an heir of a prominent family from Lopburi who has never failed an exam in her academic pursuits.
On 15 Mar 2026 GMT+7, as expected, the House of Representatives held a secret ballot and elected Ms. Mallika Jiraphanwanich, MP for Lopburi from the Bhumjaithai Party, to serve as the First Deputy Speaker. The party finalized her candidacy at the last moment, selecting a true blue camp representative due to her strong performance, having won three out of four constituencies in Lopburi province.
Ms. Mallika Jiraphanwanich, nicknamed Ple, was born on 22 May 1964 and is currently 61 years old. She is a native of Lopburi. She holds two bachelor's degrees: the first in Secondary Education from Khon Kaen University, and the second in Law from Ramkhamhaeng University. She then earned a master's degree in Business Administration from Ramkhamhaeng University.
Ms. Mallika is the daughter of Mr. Kamon Jiraphanwanich, a former Lopburi MP for the Chart Thai Party for eight terms, who has now joined the Bhumjaithai Party, and Mrs. Payong Jiraphanwanich. She had a brother, Mr. Suban Jiraphanwanich, a former mayor of the Lopburi Provincial Administrative Organization, who was assassinated in a shooting at Khao San Alley in 2011. The family operates a shopping center business in Lopburi and also runs a rice trading business called “Tha Khao Jiraphanwanich.”
Ms. Mallika is also related to Mrs. Orapin Jiraphanwanich, a two-term Lopburi Provincial Administrative Organization president and wife of the late Mr. Suban, who is her sister-in-law. It is well known that the Jiraphanwanich family has never lost an election in Lopburi, whether at local or national levels.
Her political career began in 1991 as a member of the Lopburi Municipal Council. In 2004, she was elected to the Lopburi Provincial Administrative Organization council representing Tha Wung district. She entered national politics in 2009 by winning a by-election for a Lopburi MP seat under the Chart Thai Pattana Party, replacing her father Kamon, who was banned from politics for five years due to his role as a party executive. She won her first term as an MP then. In 2011, she switched to the Bhumjaithai Party and has been re-elected three more times in Mueang and Tha Wung districts, serving continuously to the present.
As an MP, her key role has been proposing measures to address drought issues for farmers in Lopburi and neighboring provinces, especially for rice, corn, cassava, and sugarcane growers. She advocated for establishing a committee to review drought prevention plans and solutions. Additionally, she has called for compensation of 1,000 baht per rai for rice farmers, tackled poverty issues, managed northern floodwaters, and supported amendments to referendum laws.
Most recently, in the 2026 election, Ms. Mallika won the Lopburi constituency 2 seat with an overwhelming 55,191 votes, securing her fourth consecutive term as an MP. During the first Anutin cabinet, she was appointed Deputy Minister of Transport, becoming the first female minister from Lopburi. In the second Anutin cabinet, she was entrusted with overseeing the legislative branch and was unanimously elected as the First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.
