As Thailand’s 2026 general election approaches, the country is confronting a familiar, unresolved problem—vote buying. Deep-rooted in Thai politics, the practice has resurfaced aggressively, highlighting a systemic failure of the nation’s democratic safeguards. While the practice has long been illegal, weak enforcement and lack of proactive oversight have allowed vote-buying to flourish over and over again. Here is how vote-buying operates in Thailand and why enforcement measures continue to fall short.