On Friday, the House of Representatives elected Paetongtarn “Ung Ing” Shinawatra, leader of the Pheu Thai Party, as Thailand’s 31st prime minister. She received 319 votes in favor, 145 against, and had 27 abstentions.
Sorawong Thiengthong, the secretary-general of Pheu Thai, nominated Ms. Paetongtarn as the exclusive candidate for prime minister at the beginning of the House meeting, which was called to order by Parliament President Wan Muhamad Noor Matha at 10 a.m. The nomination garnered support from 291 members of Parliament, though Ms. Paetongtarn, 37, was not present during the session.
Debates ensued among government and opposition MPs before the voting commenced at 11:11 a.m., with the results officially declared at 12:34 p.m. Out of 493 total representatives, Ms. Paetongtarn needed a simple majority of 248 votes. A total of 489 MPs were present that day.
As the youngest prime minister in Thailand’s history, Ms. Paetongtarn follows in the footsteps of her father, former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, and her aunt, Yingluck. She takes over from Srettha Thavisin, who was dismissed by the Constitutional Court on Wednesday due to an ethical violation.
Ms. Paetongtarn is the third member of the Shinawatra family to assume the position, following Thaksin and Yingluck. Additionally, Thaksin’s brother-in-law, Somchai Wongsawat, briefly held the position in 2008. Both Thaksin and Yingluck have lived in exile following military coups against their governments.
Thaksin returned to Thailand in August of last year, facing an eight-year prison sentence—which was later reduced to one year through a royal pardon—stemming from abuse of authority and conflict of interest charges during his term from 2001 to 2006. However, he did not serve time in jail, being granted parole after spending six months at the Police General Hospital.
On Thursday, the coalition government parties reached an agreement to support Paetongtarn’s candidacy for prime minister. Prior reports indicated that key coalition figures had gathered at Thaksin’s house on Wednesday night to discuss potential candidates, initially leaning towards Chaikasem Nitisiri, a 75-year-old former justice minister and attorney-general.
To be elected prime minister, a candidate must secure the support of more than half of the current 493 lawmakers, which equals 248 votes. If the candidate does not achieve this majority, the House would reconvene to hold another voting session, allowing for additional nominations. The coalition government, consisting of 11 parties, holds 314 seats in the House.
On Wednesday, the Constitutional Court ousted Srettha for violating ethical standards by appointing Pichit Chuenban as the PM’s Office minister, despite his criminal record. Pichit had previously faced accusations of attempting to bribe Supreme Court officials and served six months for contempt of court.
Meanwhile, in opposition, Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, leader of the People’s Party, announced on Thursday that the party would not support Pheu Thai’s candidate for prime minister. That same day, the opposition Democrat Party, with 25 MPs, chose to abstain from the vote.
The People’s Party is a rebranding of the recently dissolved Move Forward Party (MFP), which was disbanded by the Constitutional Court a week earlier for actions perceived as undermining the constitutional monarchy and national security. Despite winning the 2023 election, Move Forward could not establish a government due to pushback from unelected senators regarding their proposed amendment to the lese-majeste law. Subsequently, the Pheu Thai Party formed a new coalition without the MFP, which has since entered the opposition.
In the voting for prime minister on Friday, only MP votes were needed, excluding senators.
