The Constitutional Court has disqualified Senator Somchai Lenglak after the Supreme Court barred him from taking part in elections for 10 years due to election fraud committed during his 2023 general election campaign as a Bhumjaithai Party (BJT) candidate.
The court ruled unanimously to terminate his Senate membership and declared his position vacant on Wednesday, according to a statement released by the Office of the Constitutional Court on Thursday.
Mr Somchai had been suspended from his duties as a senator since Dec 11, when the same court agreed to consider the petition filed by the Election Commission (EC) requesting his disqualification.
The EC's move followed a Supreme Court ruling on Sept 23, which found Mr Somchai guilty of election fraud. In the 2023 election, Mr Somchai ran for the Songkhla District 9 seat as a candidate for the BJT and was involved in vote-buying.
After the Constitutional Court's ruling, a replacement for Mr Somchai was named from the reserve list: Thanatphong Wongmulali, the first reserve senator from Group 19 (professionals or freelancers).
Mr Thanatphong is a businessman from Maha Sarakham province with a bachelor's degree in education from Mahasarakham University and a master's degree in public administration from Bangkok Thonburi University.
He has over 30 years of experience in a direct sales business. He has also served as secretary to the House of Representatives committee on consumer protection, according to his biography submitted as part of the Senate election.
He completed a training course preparing him to become an assistant to a member of parliament or an MP himself, which was organised by King Prajadhipok's Institute on Aug 24, 2021.
