The Election Commission has outlined in detail the qualifications for candidates running for Bangkok Governor, Bangkok Councilors, Pattaya Mayor, and Pattaya City Council members, excluding the clause regarding individuals previously disqualified from voting for five years, as this provision is currently unenforceable according to the Constitutional Court's ruling.
On 25 April 2026, the Office of the Election Commission announced the qualifications for candidates running for Bangkok Metropolitan Council members, Bangkok Governor, Pattaya City Council members, and Pattaya Mayor in the case of completing their terms on 21 May 2026, following the announcement of the registration period from 28 May to 1 June 2026 and the election date set for Sunday, 28 June 2026.
To be eligible to run, candidates must be Thai nationals by birth. Those running for Bangkok Metropolitan Council or Pattaya City Council must be at least 25 years old on election day. Candidates for Bangkok Governor or Pattaya Mayor must be at least 35 years old on election day and have their names registered in the local administrative organization's household registry continuously for at least one year up to the registration day.
While there is no educational requirement for Bangkok Metropolitan Council or Pattaya City Council members, candidates for Bangkok Governor and Pattaya Mayor must hold at least a bachelor's degree or its equivalent.
Disqualifications include being addicted to illegal drugs, being bankrupt or having been fraudulently bankrupt, owning or holding shares in any newspaper or mass media business, or possessing any characteristic that disqualifies one from voting rights under the relevant law.
According to the Local Council or Local Executive Election Act B.E. 2562 (2019), Section 39, disqualifications include being a monk, novice, ascetic, or religious recluse; currently under voting rights revocation, regardless of final judgment; mentally incompetent or insane; temporarily suspended from candidacy rights or having voting rights revoked; sentenced to imprisonment and currently detained under court order; or having been dismissed from government service or a state enterprise due to corruption.
The provision disqualifying candidates who were previously deprived of their voting rights and have not yet completed five years from the date of that deprivation up to election day has been exempted. This is based on the Constitutional Court's ruling No. 5/2566 dated 3 May 2023, which held that Section 50(21) of the Local Council or Local Executive Election Act B.E. 2562, regarding this five-year disqualification, conflicts with Section 26, paragraph one of the Constitution.
Anyone who knowingly registers as a candidate despite lacking qualifications or having disqualifying characteristics faces imprisonment from 1 to 10 years and fines ranging from 20,000 to 200,000 baht. Additionally, the court will order the revocation of that person's voting rights for 20 years under Section 120 of the Local Council or Local Executive Election Act B.E. 2562 and its amendments.