Meanwhile, former Chat Thai MP for Chanthaburi Khomkhai Pollabutr has moved to the Democrat Party ahead of today's deadline for potential parliamentary candidates to change parties.

Khomkhai is the wife of Democrat deputy leader Alongkorn Pollabutr.

Alongkorn, who is in charge of Democrat MPs for the Central region, said yesterday Khomkai had spoken with Chat Thai leader Banharn Silpa-archa, who told her that she and her husband should be in the same political party.

A number of other MPs had gone over to the Democrats but did not want to reveal their moves until the day before the deadline, Alongkorn said.

A Chat Thai Party source said the party's former MP for Ratchaburi, Vijai Wattanaprasit, had moved to the Pracharaj Party while others had joined Thai Rak Thai.

Politicians who want to switch parties for the general election scheduled for October 15 must be members of their new party by today under the 90-day membership requirement.

The EC official, who asked not to be named, said Vasana would ask the 34 parties to a meeting before the end of the month to update their membership information. This would be binding on the October 15 election.

The official said Vasana wanted to prevent a repeat of allegations that small parties collaborated with corrupt officials to alter their membership data.

It was alleged that this was done to allow unqualified members to stand in certain electorates to help members of a "large party" avoid the legal complications arising from being sole candidates.

The law requires sole candidates to receive 20 per cent of the vote in a constituency, which a number failed to do in the April 2 election.

Atthayuth Butrsripoom,

Yossawadee Hongthong

The Nation