A group of reserve Senate candidates and an election inspector have submitted fresh evidence to the opposition, alleging misconduct by election authorities in the 2024 Senate election and calling for further scrutiny of the Election Commission (EC) and its secretary-general.
The petition was submitted on Tuesday to opposition chief whip Parit Wacharasindhu by Akrawat Pongthanachalitkul, a reserve Senate candidate, and Pol Col Manas Nakornsri, an election inspector for Samut Prakan.
The complainants claimed newly obtained scientific evidence and video footage indicate possible dereliction of duty and conflicts of interest involving EC commissioner Thitichet Nuchanatta and EC secretary-general Sawaeng Boonmee in connection with alleged vote-rigging during the Senate election in June 2024.
Pol Col Manas claims that on the day of the national-level Senate vote on June 26, 2024, he received information from a female Senate candidate about the circulation of coordinated voting lists, commonly referred to as "cheat sheets", among candidates.
He said he immediately relayed the information to Mr Sawaeng, who was serving as the election director, but claimed no action was taken.
According to Pol Col Manas, the alleged failure to intervene enabled the operation to proceed and affected the outcome of the first round of voting.
He also cited closed-circuit television footage that allegedly showed Mr Thitichet collecting voting lists from candidates. The claim contradicts previous EC statements denying the existence or use of such lists during the election process, he said.
Pol Col Manas further alleged that an EC investigative subcommittee had previously found grounds to pursue cases against 229 individuals, including 136 sitting senators, over alleged collusion in the election.
However, he claimed a separate panel was later established and ultimately voted 5-2 to dismiss the complaints.
