This evening (11 December 2025), Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has submitted a request for His Majesty’s approval of a Royal Decree to dissolve the House of Representatives, paving the way for a new general election.
Reporters stated that the submission of the Royal Decree followed a majority vote in Parliament requiring that the amendment to Section 256/28 of the Constitution must receive approval from no less than one-third of all senators. Nattapong Ruangpanyawut, leader of the People’s Party and opposition leader—whose party supported Anutin as prime minister—called on Anutin to dissolve the House after members of the Bhumjaithai Party voted in favor of the majority decision.
According to news sources, Pharadorn Prisananantakul, MP for Ang Thong from the Bhumjaithai Party, explained to representatives of the People’s Party that if they voted to remove the Senate’s power as demanded in the third reading, senators would reject the entire constitutional amendment. This would cause the entire reform process—long in progress—to collapse. Thus, he argued that the Senate’s authority should be maintained for now so the process can move forward.
However, the representatives of the People’s Party refused and stated that if they lost the vote on Section 256/28, they would immediately file a motion of no-confidence against the entire cabinet.
This forced Anutin to decide to dissolve the House, as his government is a minority administration supported by the People’s Party. Without that support, the government would effectively lose its mandate.
“We have tried our best to negotiate with the senators, but we cannot order them to remove their own powers. We also informed the People’s Party that if the Senate’s authority is removed, the senators will not approve the third reading, and the constitutional drafting process cannot proceed. To take responsibility for not being able to fulfill what the People’s Party demands, the House must be dissolved, as outlined in the coalition agreement. Today, Anutin has carried out that mission,” said a Bhumjaithai Party executive.
By law, once the House is dissolved, a general election must be held within 45 to 60 days.
If the Royal Decree becomes effective tonight, the latest possible election date would be Sunday, 8 February 2026.