Thailand Election 2026: Why Abhisit Vejjajiva still matters despite slim odds

2026-02-04 - 09:16

As Thailand’s major parties battle for dominance, Abhisit Vejjajiva’s Democrat Party enters the race not as a frontrunner, but as a familiar establishment force that could yet shape the next government from the margins. This article concludes a four-part series examining Thailand’s major political leaders ahead of the election. Following our previous analysis of Anutin Charnvirakul, the focus now turns to Abhisit Vejjajiva, whose candidacy represents the most traditional establishment option in a race increasingly defined by polarisation and political fragmentation. With no polls suggesting that the Democrat Party—Thailand’s oldest active political party—will win more than 40 seats, the chances of the Oxford-educated Abhisit returning to Government House is quite slim. Abhisit Vejjajiva, the Democrat Party’s prime ministerial candidate, speaks with supporters in Phatthalung on 3 February. There remains a marginal possibility that the 61-year-old Abhisit could lead a minority coalition government if there’s a political deadlock, or at least be part of the next coalition government as a deputy prime minister or through one of his senior party members, such as former finance minister Korn Chatikavanij who is the party’s deputy leader. Among the conservative camp, Abhisit remains the most broadly acceptable choice, even when compared with Anutin. While his party is predicted to win no more than 40 seats, Abhisit and the Democrats are likely to remain key players in Thai politics, particularly in a fragmented parliament. Abhisit was also warmly welcomed by supporters in Bangkok wherever he went and insists his party will win at least a few seats in Bangkok after a shockingly dismal performance over two years ago that saw the party winning not even a single Bangkok constituency. Like the People’s Party, the Democrats vow to restore Thailand to what they describe as its former glory during the high-growth decade, when the country played a more prominent role in the international community. With less than a week before the election, Abhisit’s controversial role in the deadly 2010 crackdown has resurfaced as a topic on social media. Democrat Party PM candidate Abhisit Vejjajiva poses for photos with supporters at Min Buri Market, Bangkok, on 25 January. The deaths of 99 people—many of them pro-Thaksin “Redshirt” demonstrators—during the 2010 political confrontations between the military under then prime minister Abhisit and the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) mean he is unlikely to win support from voters who would normally back Pheu Thai or the People’s Party. This sentiment persists despite a court ruling that he committed no crime, and despite Abhisit’s own widely criticised remark at the time: “Unfortunately, some people died.” This time around, the Oxford-educated Abhisit, arguably the most cosmopolitan candidate in the race and one of only two former prime ministers seeking a return to the top job, is focusing on poverty eradication, lifting Thailand’s GDP growth rate to 5 per cent per year, and declaring zero tolerance for corruption. In a deeply polarised political climate, Abhisit has emerged as the other conservative option for this who os not fully committed to Anutin but felt they couldn’t trust either the People’s Party or the Pheu Thai Party due to their political stance and past records.