Thai billionaire's daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, becomes country's youngest PM
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the 37-year-old daughter of billionaire former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, has been approved as Thailand's next prime minister. Her selection comes just two days after former PM Srettha Thavisin was removed from office by a constitutional court for appointing a lawyer with a criminal record to his Cabinet. Paetongtarn will be the youngest person to hold this position in the country.
Paetongtarn's political lineage and support
She is the youngest of Shinawatra's three children and the fourth member of the Shinawatra family to become prime minister. Shinawatra's brother-in-law, Somchai Wongsawat, briefly held the position in 2008, while his sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, served as Prime Minister from 2011 until 2014. Both Somchai and Yingluck were removed from office by court rulings, while Paetongtarn's father was ousted by coup in 2006 and returned to Thailand from exile last year.
Fourth Shinawatra to become Prime Minister
Educated at prestigious schools in Thailand and at a university in the United Kingdom, she worked for the Shinawatra family's Rende hotel firm before joining politics. She joined Pheu Thai in 2021 and was appointed party leader in October 2023, after being named one of the party's three prime ministerial candidates ahead of the election. When Paetongtarn was on the campaign trail, she acknowledged her family ties but argued she was more than just her father's agent.
Paetongtarn's political challenges and goals
"It's not the shadow of my dad. I am my dad's daughter, always and forever, but I have my own decisions," she told a reporter. Pheu Thai and its predecessors had won every national election since 2001 before losing to the reformist Move Forward in 2023. However, it was given the chance to form a government after Move Forward was stopped from assuming power by the previous Senate, a military-appointed body.
