The “X” symbol represents both “love” and “the expression of identity.”
Thai people are preparing to mark “XXX” both on February 8 and on Valentine’s Day, both occurring within the same month.
Have you ever noticed why letters or messages exchanged among Westerners—whether on paper, email, or social media inbox messages—often end with the symbols X, XX, or sometimes XO, especially when sent between lovers or close friends?
This traces back to the European Medieval period. At that time, for a letter or contract to be official and legally valid, it was customary that the signer not only write their name but also "kiss" over their signature. Without this, the letter, document, or contract was considered invalid and unlawful—a tradition that gave rise to the phrase “sealed with a kiss.”
In an era when literacy was rare, many people would ask someone literate to write letters or messages for them. Then, the person would only need to sign and kiss over their signature to legitimize the letter or document.
Many people who were illiterate and could not even write their own name would instead mark an X as a substitute and kiss over it. Clearly, at the end of a letter, wherever there was a “name” or an “X,” there would be the signer’s “kiss.”
Over several hundred years, the X or XX at the end of letters or messages has remained associated with expressing identity and conveying love from sender to recipient.
The symbol O sometimes added to form XOXO is interpreted as representing a “hug” because of its round shape. Thus, XOXO means “Kiss & Hugs” at the end of a letter. It’s no surprise that Valentine’s Day love letters are filled with such symbols of love and identity like X or XO.
However, on February 8, the day of the parliamentary elections, Thai people will need to prepare to mark X on three different ballots.
Green ballot - Constituency Member of Parliament
Pink ballot - Party-list Member of Parliament
Yellow ballot - Referendum vote on whether to amend the 2017 Constitution.
This is a crucial moment for Thai citizens to use the X symbol to express their identity and love—the love voters have for their stance, identity, and faith, shared by 55 million Thais in democracy.
But! For the February 8 election, marking X on all three ballots and colors is not freeform like a love letter on Valentine’s Day. The Election Commission of Thailand has explicitly specified the proper and improper ways to mark X on the ballots.