Thaksin's Daughter Paetongtarn Becomes Thailand's Youngest PM

The daughter of former leader Thaksin Shinawatra – a divisive political figure who spent years in exile – has been elected as Thailand’s new prime minister.

Paetongtarn, 37, won a vote in the parliament in Bangkok on Friday, two days after Pheu Thai Party’s former premier Srettha Thavisin was dismissed by the country’s top court for a serious ethical violation.

The selection of Paetongtarn, a relative political novice, comes amid power struggles between the country’s warring elites which have dragged on for close to two decades. Some analysts say she could face a baptism of fire.

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At stake for Paetongtarn could be the legacy and political future of the billionaire Shinawatra family, whose once unstoppable populist juggernaut suffered its first election defeat in over two decades last year, and had to do a deal with its bitter enemies in the military to form a government.

She will become Thailand’s second female prime minister and the third Shinawatra to take the top job after aunt Yingluck Shinawatra, and father Thaksin, the country’s most influential and polarising politician.

In her first comments as prime minister, Paetongtarn said she had been saddened and confused by Srettha’s dismissal and decided it was time to step up.

“I talked to Srettha, my family and people in my party and decided it was about time to do something for the country and the party,” she told reporters.

“I hope I can do my best to make the country go forward. That’s what I’m trying to do. Today I’m honoured and I feel very happy.”

Paetongtarn won easily with 319 votes, or nearly two-thirds of the House. Her first public comment on the win was posting on Instagram a picture of her lunch – chicken rice – with the caption: “The first meal after listening to the vote.”

Challenges on many fronts

Paetongtarn has never served in government and the decision to thrust her into the limelight is a big roll of the dice for Pheu Thai and its 75-year-old figurehead Thaksin.

She will immediately face challenges on multiple fronts, with the economy floundering, competition from a rival party growing, and Pheu Thai’s popularity dwindling, having yet to deliver on its flagship cash handout programme worth 500 billion baht ($14.25 billion) known as the ‘digital wallet’.

“The Shinawatras’ gambit here is risky,” Nattabhorn Buamahakul, managing partner at government affairs consultancy, Vero Advocacy.

“It puts Thaksin’s daughter in the crosshairs and a vulnerable position.”

The fall of Srettha after less than a year in office will be a stark reminder of the kind of hostility Paetongtarn could face, with Thailand trapped in a tumultuous cycle of coups and court rulings that have disbanded political parties and toppled multiple governments and prime ministers.

The Shinawatras and their business allies have borne the brunt of the crisis, which pits parties with mass appeal against a powerful nexus of conservatives, old money families and royalist generals with deep connections in key institutions.

Big risk for Shinawatras

Nine days ago, the same court that dismissed Srettha over a cabinet appointment also dissolved the Move Forward Party – the 2023 election winner – over a campaign to amend a law against insulting the crown, which it said risked undermining the constitutional monarchy.

The hugely popular opposition party, Pheu Thai’s biggest challenger, has since regrouped as the People’s Party.

The upheaval in the past few days also indicates a breakdown in a fragile truce struck between Thaksin and his rivals in the establishment and military old guard, which had enabled the tycoon’s dramatic return from 15 years of self-exile in 2023 and ally Srettha to become premier the same day.

Thaksin’s gamble on Paetongtarn at such a critical juncture surprised many analysts, who expected him to delay his dynasty and avoid exposing his daughter to the type of battles that led to the downfall of himself and sister Yingluck, who both fled overseas to avoid jail after their governments were ousted by the military.

“This is a big bet for Thaksin. There is a possibility for her to fail and that is a big risk for the entire Shinawatra dynasty,” Titipol Phakdeewanich, a political scientist at Ubon Ratchathani University, said.

“If she can’t bring the economy back and bring the party back then it could be the end because the People’s Party is gaining more momentum after their dissolution.”