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.

<p>The elections for Tambon (Subdistrict) Administrative Organizations (TAOs) across the country have just passed without much press coverage. Achara Rakyutitham writes about how people in a village up on a hill in the North see and deal with local politics.</p>