POST REPORTERS

The Democrat hopeful for Kanchanaburi's constituency 5, Pracha Phothipipit, and Chart Thai candidate for Nakhon Ratchasima's constituency 7, Pirom Polwiset, have petitioned against Sunday's poll results, claiming election fraud led to their defeats.

Mr Pracha, better known as Kamnan Sia, told a press conference at his house in Tha Maka district, Kanchanaburi, that he was unable to accept the result.

He had appealed to the provincial election committee because most locals confirmed they voted for him, but the results were different and there were irregularities in the transfer of ballot boxes and in the vote counts.

He complained to the panel that seals on some ballot boxes sent to the constituency 5 vote count centre had been destroyed, several ballot boxes were found beside a railway and vote counts at the centre continued although three Sor Sor 35 papers, required electoral documentation papers, were missing.

The Democrat candidate denied the 1.5 million baht in cash seized by Sai Yok police from Surachai Chanthong and suspected of being intended for vote buying belonged to him.

He said Democrat candidate for constituency 3, Parames Photharakul, or Kamnan Boy, was elected because there was no threat against locals there and many still loved the Democrats while state power was widely used to pressure voters in other Kanchanaburi constituencies.

In Nakhon Ratchasima, Mr Pirom, the Chart Thai candidate for constituency 7, along with more than 100 supporters, presented the provincial election committee with a letter, photos and video tapes as evidence for protesting the election results and demanding a new round of polling in the constituency.

He alleged vote counts in constituency 7 were unfair since 20 ballot boxes did not carry signatures of the 10 election panel members as required by law and three tiers of ballot boxes were put up in front of the vote count centre to make it hard for people to observe the count.

Mr Pirom was second with 21,193 votes while Thai Tak Thai's Pongpit Rungpao won with 52,901 votes in constituency 5.