According to EC secretary-general Sawaeng Boonmee, the government must seek a court’s clarification on whether conducting a referendum by mail-in ballots would violate existing rules that prohibit advance voting, reports the Bangkok Post.
Mr Sawaeng was responding to a proposal by Parit Watcharasindhu, an MP from the People’s Party, who suggested allowing citizens to vote in the referendum in advance via mail.
He noted that the EC’s primary responsibility is to ensure that both the election and the referendum are completed properly and lawfully.
“If both the general election and a national referendum are to be held simultaneously, it will inevitably be complicated,” he said.
“The EC must find ways to make the process as convenient as possible for voters, while staying within legal limits. We are not afraid of challenges, but we must ensure that both the election and its results are legitimate and orderly.”
He emphasised that while certain administrative conveniences can be implemented beyond what is explicitly written in the law, any action that exceeds legal boundaries could jeopardise the results of the vote.
“We will not take even the slightest risk that could compromise the electoral process or its results,” he said. “Now that such a proposal has been raised, we will revisit the legal framework to see what can and cannot be done.”
Mr Sawaeng clarified that administrative management is not the main issue - legality is.
“The question is whether the law allows it,” he explained. “If postal registration is interpreted as advance voting, then it is not permitted by law.
“We must distinguish between ‘postal voting in advance’ and ’postal voting on the official referendum day’ - these are two different things,” he added.
He further explained that postal referenda are legally permissible only if conducted on the officially designated day of the referendum, not in advance.
“Counting postal ballots won’t be a problem,” he said. “What matters is whether the law authorises such action. We must examine whether advance postal voting is legally allowed, as it is not the same as casting a ballot on the referendum day.”