A former top police officer has successfully secured the new position of Constitutional Court judge, overcoming fierce opposition from a group of new-generation senators who heavily criticized his lack of qualifications in the political science field.
On 23 June 2026 GMT+7, the Senate meeting, chaired by Deputy Senate President Boonsong Noisophon, urgently considered the approval of Mr. Chakrapong Wiwatwanich, a former special advisor at the Royal Thai Police (RTP), to serve as a Constitutional Court judge. This followed a proposal by the standing committee responsible for reviewing background, conduct, and ethical behavior, chaired by Police Major General Chatwattana Saengphet, a senator.
Reporters noted that before the closed session, tensions ran high as several new-generation senators vehemently opposed the vote. They focused on questioning the nominee’s qualifications, led by Senator Pornchai Witthalerphan, who called for postponing the selection by one to two weeks and highlighted two main issues: the selection board was incomplete, lacking the opposition leader from the House of Representatives to participate in the consideration process.
Regarding qualifications, Chakrapong rose through the ranks as an academic in the Police Science faculty at the Police Cadet Academy, with notable achievements in investigation and law (jurisprudence). However, this background does not align with the political science quota for which the position was open. Furthermore, voices that previously opposed his qualifications included the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, leading to calls for extra caution and to avoid rushing the decision.
Senator Wuttichart Kalyanamitr, secretary of the background screening committee, responded by explaining that the committee had carefully considered the matter. He questioned why the majority decision, which included the Chief Justice of the Administrative Court, was ignored in the complaints citing opposition from the Supreme Court Chief Justice. He emphasized that assessing qualifications is the responsibility of the selection committee, not the screening committee, and firmly stated that no one can command the senators.
After intense debate, the Senate held a closed session for an internal vote. When the results were announced, the majority in the upper house overwhelmingly supported the former top police officer, with 140 votes in favor, 17 against, and 22 abstentions. Consequently, Chakrapong was officially approved by the Senate as the new Constitutional Court judge, successfully overcoming opposition from the new-generation group.