Voting opened Sunday (February 8, 2026) in a Thai general election pitting the popular reformists who came first last time against the conservative who ended up as Prime Minister, with ex-leader Thaksin Shinawatra looming large from his prison cell.
The Southeast Asian nation's next government will need to reckon with a longstanding border dispute with Cambodia that erupted into deadly fighting twice last year.
Thailand's turbulent politics since 2001
"We need a strong leader who can protect our sovereignty," said Yuernyong Loonboot, 64, the first voter to cast his ballot at a polling station in Buriram, the hometown of incumbent Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul.
"Living here, the border conflict has made me anxious. War was never something we used to think about."
