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Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been elected as Thailand’s prime minister, becoming the country’s youngest-ever leader and marking the return to power of the Shinawatra family, which has dominated Thai politics over the past two decades.
Paetongtarn, 37, clinched the premiership on Friday after gaining the backing of a majority of lawmakers in the Thai parliament. She will become Asia’s youngest leader, and Thailand’s third from the Shinawatra clan after her father, the divisive former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, and her aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra.
The youngest of Thaksin’s three children, Paetongtarn is a newcomer to Thai politics with no previous experience in government. She gained popularity as a prime ministerial candidate during last year’s general election, when she campaigned during the later stages of pregnancy as chief of the Shinawatras’ Pheu Thai party.
Paetongtarn, who is not an elected lawmaker, was the only nominee in the parliamentary vote on Friday. Her swift ascent followed a ruling by Thailand’s constitutional court this week to remove former prime minister Srettha Thavisin from office over a cabinet appointment that the court said breached ethical standards. Srettha had served less than a year in the role.
Paetongtarn’s premiership could signal more volatility in Thai politics, which has been riven by military coups and changes in leadership. The Shinawatras struck a deal with bitter rivals in the military-royalist establishment last year to form a government, but tensions have been brewing over the past few months.
Thaksin, 75, was indicted in May for allegedly insulting the country’s monarchy in comments he made in 2015. A telecommunications tycoon turned politician, Thaksin was ousted in a coup in 2006 and returned to Thailand only last year after Pheu Thai decided to form a ruling coalition with conservative parties.
Yingluck, who was dismissed by the country’s constitutional court in 2014, remains in exile.
Srettha’s removal this week was triggered by the appointment of a former lawyer who is close to the Shinawatra family.
Paetongtarn’s appointment is the latest in a series of shake-ups in Thai politics. Last week, the opposition Move Forward party — which won the most votes in the 2023 election but was blocked from power — was dissolved by the constitutional court over its promises to reform the country’s harsh lèse-majesté law.
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