Thaksin’s Daughter Nominated for Prime Minister Position
In a historic move, Thailand’s ruling coalition has unanimously chosen Paetongtarn Shinawatra, daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, as their candidate for the upcoming Prime Minister election tomorrow.
“We have decided to nominate Paetongtarn Shinawatra,” announced Sorawong Thienthong, Secretary-General of the Pheu Thai Party, during a press conference on August 15th in Bangkok. Pheu Thai, Thailand’s largest party within the current 11-party ruling coalition, stands united behind this choice.
Paetongtarn, at just 37, is the youngest daughter of Thaksin Shinawatra, the founder of Pheu Thai. Since entering politics in 2021, she has quickly risen to prominence and was one of three Pheu Thai candidates for Prime Minister in April 2023. The Thai House of Representatives is set to convene at 10:00 AM on August 16th to vote on the new Prime Minister. The successful candidate must secure a majority, needing at least 247 out of 493 votes. Should no candidate achieve this threshold, the House will reconvene and repeat the voting process.
With the Pheu Thai-led coalition holding 314 seats in the House, Paetongtarn’s path to victory seems clear. If elected, she will succeed Srettha Thavisin and become the third member of the Shinawatra family to serve as Prime Minister, following in the footsteps of her father, Thaksin, and her aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra.
Srettha was dismissed by Thailand’s Constitutional Court on August 14th for appointing a minister with a criminal record. Accepting the court’s ruling, Srettha stepped down immediately. He is the fourth Prime Minister to be removed by the Constitutional Court in the past 16 years. In the interim, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Phumtham Wechayacha is serving as Acting Prime Minister.
