Biography of Wirat Meenchainan, former Minburi councillor from the Pheu Thai Party for five terms, who has decided to re-enter local politics under the group name "Pheu Thai Life in Balance.".,
On 26 May 2026, after the group "Pheu Thai Life in Balance" announced its candidates for the Bangkok Metropolitan Council elections, one of the candidates was Wirat Meenchainan, former Minburi councillor for five terms. Recently, Wirat's Facebook profile has also been updated to reflect affiliation with this group.
Wirat Meenchainan was born on 16 February 1963 and is currently 63 years old.
- He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Chiang Mai University.
- He earned a Master's degree in Political Science from Ramkhamhaeng University.
- He is the younger brother of Wichan Meenchainan, former Deputy Minister of Public Health.
- His nephew is Suphanat Meenchainan, a two-term Bangkok MP from the Prachachon Party.
On 11 February 2001, Wirat entered local politics and was elected Minburi district councillor for the first term under the Thai Rak Thai Party, succeeding his elder brother Wichan who resigned. He was subsequently elected as a member of the Bangkok Metropolitan Council for five terms as follows:
1. Councillor, 1998-2002, affiliated with Thai Rak Thai Party (elected to fill a vacancy in 2001).
2. Councillor, 2002-2006, affiliated with Thai Rak Thai Party.
3. Councillor, 2006-2010, affiliated with Thai Rak Thai Party.
4. Councillor, 2010-2014, affiliated with Pheu Thai Party.
5. Councillor, 2022-2026, affiliated with Pheu Thai Party (resigned on 19 December 2025).
Wirat and the Meenchainan family have been a powerful local dynasty in Minburi for many years, starting with Suthee Meenchainan, uncle of Wichan and Wirat, who engaged in multiple businesses including rice milling, construction contracting, building materials trading, and real estate. The family owns numerous properties and thousands of rai of land in Bangkok worth tens of billions of baht. Suthee also holds honorary chairmanships for several foundations in Thailand, such as the Thai-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.
Wichan, Wirat's elder brother, has extensive political experience: two terms as councillor from 1994 to 2000, first deputy chairman of the Bangkok Metropolitan Council in 1998, four terms as Bangkok MP from 2001 to 2013, assistant secretary to the Minister of Education during Arree Wong-araya’s tenure, advisor to the Deputy Minister of Public Health under Chonlatan Srikaew, and Deputy Minister of Public Health in the governments of Samak Sundaravej and Somchai Wongsawat. He also served as deputy leader of the Pheu Thai Party.
Before fully engaging in local politics, Wirat held key positions such as former director of the Chatuchak Market and advisor to the Deputy Minister of Finance. In local politics, he was continuously elected councillor and served as the 23rd chairman of the Bangkok Metropolitan Council from 2022 to 2024. His nephew, Suphanat Meenchainan (MP Bank), is a two-term Bangkok MP from the Prachachon Party. This reflects the Meenchainan family's significant wealth and strong political influence.
On 19 December 2025, Wirat resigned as Minburi district councillor to run as the 28th candidate on the party list for the 2026 general election. However, his list ranking was not high enough to secure a seat. Now, as the Bangkok Metropolitan Council elections approach on 28 June, Wirat has decided to return to local politics under the group "Pheu Thai Life in Balance."