Political Dynamics and Behavior in General Election of the Residents in Pak Phanang District, Nakhon SI Thammarat Province, 2001-2023
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Abstract
This article aimed to examine the dynamics and political behavior of the people of the Pak Phanang district between 2001 and 2023. The research methods included in-depth interviews and document research. The In-depth interviews were conducted with five groups: politicians, local scholars, local media, district electoral canvassers, and Pak Phanang voters. The research findings revealed that political dynamics in Pak Phanang District can be divided into three periods. First, the political consolidation under the supremacy of the Democrat Party (2001-2011), and second, the popularity of General Prayuth Chan-o-cha (2019) led to the victory of the Palang Pracharath Party, a significant factor leading to the third period. The third period is the period of the coexistence victory of the United Thai Nation Party with the popularity of General Prayuth Chan-o-cha (2019-2023) at the party list level and the Democrat Party with the local political network of the Detdecho political family at the constituency level. Thus, Pak Phanang voters' political behavior and dynamics were not based on the notion of the moral candidate, as was the case during the Democrat Party's supremacy in the 2000s. The current political behavior and dynamics of Pak Phanang voters were based on the need for both a moral national leader and everyday economic well-being.
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