Under experienced and facing significant challenges: Who is Thailand’s new prime minister.

Department of Research, Strategic Studies and International Relations 16-08-2024

Paetongtarn Shinawatra is the fourth member of her family to take on the role of Thailand’s prime minister, but she must navigate a nation that has changed considerably since her father’s time in office.

Shinawatra hails from one of Thailand’s most powerful and polarizing political families. Her father, Thaksin, was once a dominant force in elections, and she now becomes the fourth Shinawatra to lead the country.

However, the political landscape has evolved since the height of her father’s influence, and Paetongtarn, Thailand’s youngest prime minister to date, will likely encounter significant challenges during her tenure.

Paetongtarn, with no prior government experience, now faces the intricate task of sustaining this improbable coalition while attempting to restore the party’s reputation.

She must navigate a power struggle that stretches back two decades, marked by two military coups since 2006 that removed her father and later her aunt from power, alongside numerous political bans and party dissolutions.

Thaksin ascended to power in 2001, gaining steadfast support among rural voters in the north and northeast by introducing policies such as universal health care. However, he was also accused of corruption and human rights violations and was despised by Thailand’s royalist military elite.

Paetongtarn was studying at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University, an elite conservative institution, when her father’s premiership was engulfed in a political crisis in 2006, polarizing the nation.

Her professors openly expressed their disdain for her father, and students on campus displayed posters with Thaksin’s face crossed out; her friends often diverted her path to avoid these confrontational displays.

After completing her studies, Paetongtarn pursued hotel management at the University of Surrey in Guildford, England, before returning to Thailand to work within her family’s business conglomerate. In 2021, she was appointed as Pheu Thai’s chief adviser for participation and innovation and was one of the party’s three prime ministerial candidates in last year’s election.

On September 19 of that year, Paetongtarn received a call from her mother warning her that tanks were on the streets. Unable to return home, she was instructed to head directly to a safe house. Meanwhile, her father, attending the UN General Assembly abroad, had been deposed. “I was terrified. I was still in my school uniform,” Paetongtarn recounted to Thai media.

In 2008, Thaksin’s brother-in-law, Somchai Wongsawat, briefly served as prime minister before being ousted by a court ruling.

In 2014, Paetongtarn’s aunt Yingluck also faced a similar fate, removed by a court ruling before the military seized control once again.

Paetongtarn led Pheu Thai’s campaign efforts, particularly focusing on mobilizing support from her father’s loyal base. Despite being pregnant during the campaign, she actively participated in rallies, often through video links when unable to travel, and gave birth just two weeks before the election.

Though Paetongtarn did not ultimately run for the prime minister position when her party took power last year, a surprising court ruling on Wednesday ordered Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin to step down due to ethics violations—a decision widely viewed as politically motivated—leaving Pheu Thai with limited choices.

Paetongtarn, with minimal political experience, now faces the daunting task of managing Thailand’s volatile political landscape and revitalizing the country’s sluggish economy. While parties linked to Thaksin once held widespread popularity, many voters now believe that change lies elsewhere.