- Paetongtarn Shinawatra is Thailand’s youngest Prime Minister at 37, and she takes office as the third Shinawatra to lead the country
- Paetongtarn follows her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, and aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra, whose terms ended with military coups
- She was chosen to replace Srettha Thavisin and represents a shift towards youth and revitalisation within the Pheu Thai party
BANGKOK, Aug 18 — Thailand’s new Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, scion of the kingdom’s most prominent political dynasty, comes to office freighted with a long family history of power, protests and coups.
The 37-year-old accepted King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s command to form a government today, barely two years after she entered politics.
She is the country’s youngest premier and the third Shinawatra to hold the role.
But she will hope to avoid the fate of her father and aunt, whose terms as PM both ended with the army seizing power in a tussle between the family and Thailand’s pro-royalist, pro-military elite fought over more than 20 years.
Paetongtarn’s Pheu Thai party chose her to replace Srettha Thavisin, sacked as premier on Wednesday by the Constitutional Court for appointing a cabinet minister with a criminal conviction.
She helped run the hotel arm of the ultra-rich family’s business empire before entering politics in late 2022.
Despite being pregnant, she was a near-constant presence on the campaign trail for last year’s election, regularly leading rallies in the stifling tropical heat.
She gave birth to a son just two weeks before polling day, hailing the baby as her “secret power” and swiftly getting back to canvassing.
But the vote proved a disappointment, as Pheu Thai finished second to the new progressive Move Forward Party.
It was the first time a Shinawatra party had been beaten in a national vote, but Pheu Thai triumphed eventually as Srettha took power in alliance with pro-military parties previously staunchly opposed to Thaksin and his followers.
Pheu Thai members voted overwhelmingly in October 2023 for Paetongtarn to become party leader and vowed to rejuvenate its image.
Energy, youth
Born in Bangkok on August 21, 1986, Paetongtarn is the third and youngest child of Thaksin, a policeman turned telecoms tycoon who revolutionised Thai politics in the early 2000s, winning two elections before being ousted in a coup in 2006.
Known in Thailand by her nickname Ung Ing, she grew up in Bangkok and studied hotel management in Britain.
In 2019 she married commercial pilot Pidok Sooksawas, celebrating with two glitzy receptions — one in the Thai capital, and one in Hong Kong attended by her father, then in self-exile.
The couple now have two children, who feature regularly in playful photos Paetongtarn posts on her social media accounts, where she has more than a million followers.
In Thailand’s political scene, long dominated by strait-laced elderly men, Paetongtarn’s youth and energy stand out — her taste for vibrant designer clothes marking a striking contrast to the staid suits and uniforms of her rivals.
She was chosen as PM candidate ahead of party stalwart Chaikasem Nitisiri, 75, a move reflecting “Pheu Thai’s strategy to stand by the youth movement”, political analyst Yuttaporn Issarachai told AFP.
But observers say she will have to work hard to avoid being seen as too much under her father’s influence.
Critics of Thaksin among Thai elite have long suspected him of effectively running Pheu Thai from afar, and observers will watch keenly for signs of him meddling in Paetongtarn’s administration.
In the past she has said she is still his “little girl” and draws strength from his support and guidance. — AFP
