2026 Thai constitutional referendum

2026 Thai constitutional referendum

8 February 2026

Do you approve that there should be a new constitution?

A constitutional referendum is scheduled to be held in Thailand on 8 February 2026 to ask voters whether they approve beginning the process of writing a new constitution to replace the current one adopted in 2017.

Caretaker Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul officially began the process of holding a referendum on 23 December 2025 and the date was officially announced by a Royal Gazette published on 2 January 2026. The referendum will coincide with the 2026 general election. ^[1] Holding the both elections on the same date was chosen to effectively use public funds. ^[2]

Background

See also: 2007 Thai constitutional referendum and 2016 Thai constitutional referendum

Following the 2006 coup that ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, the ruling military junta of the Council for National Security repealed the 1997 "People's" Constitution and introduced an interim constitution. The 1997 constitution was Thailand's most democratic constitution: it created a bicameral legislature where both houses were directly and democratically elected, and was elected by the National Assembly. ^[3] The new 2007 constitution was drafted and then adopted after Thailand's first referendum was held on 19 August 2007. A majority (57.81%) of voters were in favour of the new constitution, whilst opposition was concentrated in the north and northeast where Thaksin and his parties were popular. ^[4] The referendum was followed by the return of elections in December. However, the new referendum was also seen as an attempt to contain the influence of Thaksin and his allies. ^[5] Between 2007 and 2014, Thaksin-friendly politicians became Prime Ministers and in 2011 his sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, was elected prime minister. A political crisis led to her removal in 2014, followed by a coup d'état in 2014 that replaced the 2007 constitution with the 2014 interim constitution. The ruling military junta of the National Council for Peace and Order began drafting a new constitution and criticism of it was banned. The 2016 referendum saw 61.4% of voters approve of it, and it was adopted in 2017. ^{[6] [7] [8]}

Process

Following the removal of Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra by the Constitutional Court on 29 August 2025, the conservative Bhumjaithai Party entered into negotiations with the progressive People's Party to secure their support to back Anutin Charnvirakul as prime minister. In an agreement between the two parties, the People's Party agreed to support Anutin on the terms that Anutin dissolve the House within four months, Bhumjaithai must maintain a minority coalition, and must also initiate the process of amending the 2017 constitution and hold a referendum if required. ^[9] The referendum on whether to amend the constitution would then lead to the establishment of an elected constitution drafting assembly and must be held no later than the general election. If the Constitutional Court did not find a referendum necessary, an elected drafting assembly would be established. ^[10]

On 10 September, the Constitutional Court voted 6-1 that three referendums are required to begin the process of drafting a new constitution, and members of the Constitution Drafting Assembly cannot be directly elected. The ruling followed a petition by Wan Muhamad Noor Matha, speaker of the House of Representatives, under Section 210 (1)(2). In a 5-2 vote, the court found that the House had the authority to begin the charter rewrite process but this must be preceded by a referendum asking voters if they approve of a rewrite. In the three referendums required by the court, the first should ask whether a new constitution should be drafted, the second will seek public opinion on the principles and methods of the rewrite, whilst the third will ask if voters approve of the new constitution. The first and second referendums may be combined. ^{[11] [12]}

See also

• 2016 Thai constitutional referendum
• 2007 Thai constitutional referendum

References

1. "Referendum date officially set for same election day". Bangkok Post. 2026-01-02. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
2. "Royal Gazette Declares 8 Feb 2026 as Referendum and Election Day". en.thairath.co.th. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
3. Kittipong Kittayarak, The Thai Constitution of 1997 and its Implication on Criminal Justice Reform Archived 2007-06-14 at the Wayback Machine
4. Bunbongkarn, Suchit (2009), Funston, John (ed.), "Thailand's 2007 Constitution and Re-Emerging Democracy: Will Political Polarization Continue?", Divided Over Thaksin: Thailand's Coup and Problematic Transition, Books and Monographs, ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute, pp. 89–95, ISBN   978-981-230-962-4 , retrieved 2026-01-03
5. Ockey, James (2008). "Thailand in 2007: The Struggle to Control Democracy". Asian Survey. 48 (1): 20–28. doi:10.1525/as.2008.48.1.20. ISSN   0004-4687.
6. Bangprapa, Mongkol (2016-08-11). "Official charter referendum figures posted". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
7. Ehrlich, Richard C. (2016-03-29). "Thailand's new constitution falls short of return to democracy, critics say". The Washington Times . Retrieved 30 March 2016.
8. Ghosh, Nirmal (2016-04-04). "Thai military's grand design in politics". Editorial. Straits Times. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
9. "Making sense of People's Party's conditions for Anutin". world.thaipbs.or.th. Retrieved 2025-12-15.
10. "Parties announce terms of People's Party support for Anutin". Bangkok Post. 2025-09-03. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
11. Sattaburuth, Aekarach (2025-09-11). "Three referendums required, says court". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
12. "Constitutional Court rules three referenda are needed for charter rewrite". world.thaipbs.or.th. Retrieved 2026-01-03.