Bangkok: The Senate voted to reject the appointments of Mrs. Siripan Noksuan Sawasdee and Mr. Chatri Archananan as judges of the Constitutional Court. Both candidates failed to secure enough votes in the secret ballot.
According to Thai News Agency, the Senate meeting was led by Mr. Mongkol Surachat, the President of the Senate. The meeting aimed to approve candidates for the Constitutional Court judgeships to replace Mr. Nakarin Mektrairat, the President of the Constitutional Court, and Mr. Panya Utchachan, a Constitutional Court judge. Mrs. Siripan is a lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science at Chulalongkorn University, while Mr. Chatri is a former Director-General of the Consular Affairs Department and has served as an ambassador to several countries.
During the secret voting session, Mrs. Siripan received 43 votes in favor, 136 votes against, with 7 abstentions, and 1 vote was unaccounted for. Mr. Chatri received 47 votes in favor, 115 votes against, 22 abstentions, and 3 votes were unaccounted for. Both candidates failed to secure the majority needed, as there are currently 199 senators eligible to perform their duties.
