37 Years Old
OpenLife Nigeria reports that the Thai parliament on Friday, August 16, 2024, elected Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the 37-year-old leader of the ruling Pheu Thai Party, as prime minister, two days after Srettha Thavisin was removed from the position by the Constitutional Court.
Paetongtarn, the youngest daughter of one-time Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, won support from 319 lower house members, reaching the necessary majority of votes.
A total of 491 lawmakers were present, with 145 voting against her and 27 members abstaining. No candidates were nominated by the opposition.
Paetongtarn is expected to hold a press conference on Friday.
Paetongtarn will soon become the country’s 31st prime minister and form a new government. In a press conference on Thursday, she said she would continue her party’s policies.
Former Prime Minister Srettha was dismissed by the court for breaching the constitution by appointing an ex-convict to his cabinet. In addition to Srettha’s removal, the court also ordered the entire cabinet to step down.
About Her
Born on August 21, 1986, Paetongtarn Shinawatra is a Thai politician and businesswoman who has served as Prime Minister of Thailand since 2024 and as leader of the Pheu Thai Party since 2023.
A member of the Shinawatra political family, she is the youngest daughter and niece of the two former Thai prime ministers Thaksin and Yingluck, respectively.
Paetongtarn Shinawatra became the youngest Prime Minister of Thailand in Thai history and only the second woman to hold the position, following in the footsteps of her aunt Yingluck Shinawatra.
Early Life and Education
Paetongtarn Shinawatra was born in Bangkok.
She went to Saint Joseph Convent School for junior high school and Mater Dei School for high school.
She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, Sociology and Anthropology from the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University in 2008 and continued her studies in England, earning a MSc degree in International Hotel Management from the University of Surrey.
Business Career
Paetongtarn is the No. 1 shareholder of SC Asset Corporation and a director of the Thaicom Foundation.
As of 2022, she was holding a total of 21 companies valued at approximately 68 billion Baht.
Political Career
At a meeting of the Pheu Thai Party on 20 March 2022, Paetongtarn was elected as “Head of the Pheu Thai Family.”
When speaking at the Pheu Thai Party’s annual general meeting in April 2022, she said that she wants to see regime change in Thailand and wants to gain more experience before standing for the post of the country’s prime minister.
Paetongtarn became the leading prime minister-candidate in the opinion polls.
In April 2023, she was officially nominated as one of the three prime minister-candidates of Pheu Thai Party for general election, along with Srettha Thavisin and Chaikasem Nitisiri.
After the general election in May 2023, the Pheu Thai Party secured the second-highest number of seats in the House of Representatives, following the Move Forward Party.
She expressed disappointment that the party did not achieve first place as planned but stated that she was ready to work with the Move Forward Party and other parties willing to form a coalition with both parties.
However, after Pheu Thai Party withdrew from the memorandum of understanding to form a government with the Move Forward Party, on August 9, she and Pheu Thai Party executives walked from the OAI Tower, where the party’s headquarters are located, to the neighboring Thai Summit Tower to discuss with the Move Forward Party leaders about endorsing a candidate for the third round of prime ministerial voting.
The following day, it was reported that Paetongtarn informed the Move Forward Party leaders that Pheu Thai Party needed to bring the Palang Pracharath Party, led by General Prawit Wongsuwan, into the coalition government.
This led to the Move Forward Party deciding, six days later, not to support Pheu Thai’s prime ministerial candidate. Following weeks of debate, Srettha was elected prime minister by the parliament of Thailand.
Paetongtarn expressing her vision after being elected as the Pheu Thai Party’s leader on September 13, 2023, during the first meeting of the 63rd Thai Cabinet, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin ordered the establishment of the National Soft Power Strategy Committee and appointed Paetongtarn as the Deputy Chairperson.
Later, on October 3, Srettha appointed her to two additional positions: Chairperson of the National Soft Power Development Committee and a member of the Committee for the Organization of Celebrations for King Vajiralongkorn’s 72nd Birthday Anniversary on July 28, 2024.
Subsequently, on October 7, Srettha appointed her as the Deputy Chairperson of the National Health System Development Committee.
On 27 October 2023, Paetongtarn was elected by the PTP’s core members during a general assembly held at the party’s head office to become the party’s new leader, receiving 289 votes with one abstention.
Prime Minister
Following the removal of Srettha as prime minister by the Constitutional Court of Thailand on 14 August 2024, Paetongtarn was nominated by Pheu Thai to succeed him.
Her nomination was approved by parliament on 16 August, making her the youngest person and the second woman to become Prime Minister of Thailand.
Political positions and Social issues
Paetongtarn is socially liberal on most issues. She supports LGBT rights and attended the Bangkok Pride Parade in 2023 along with the MFP’s Pita Limjaroenrat.
Additionally, she supports rewriting the constitution and scrapping military conscription.
However, she opposes amending Thailand’s lèse-majesté laws.
Like her party, Paetongtarn supports stricter drug control and tough-on-crime measures.
Although Paetongtarn and the PTP pledged not to form a government with military linked parties such as United Thai Nation and Palang Pracharath, the PTP-led government consisted of both parties which led to widespread criticism.
Economics
In a 2023 interview with FAROSE, Paetongtarn called herself a “socially liberal capitalist.” Paetongtarn stated that her party and Srettha Thavisin wants to focus on bread and butter issues and improving the economy. She supports “capitalism with empathy” along with gradually raising the minimum wage and implementing a ฿10,000 ‘digital wallet’ scheme.
In May 2024, Paetongtarn told party members at an event held at Pheu Thai headquarters “The law that keeps the Bank of Thailand (BoT) independent from the government … is a problem and a significant obstacle in fixing economic problems,” referencing the decade high interest rate of 2.50% which Srettha Thavisin believes was hurting small businesses and hurting government efforts to jumpstart an economy he says is in crisis.
Paetongtarn said BoT monetary policy “refuses to understand and cooperate” and would hamper efforts to reduce high levels of debt.
Personal life
She is married to Pitaka Suksawat, a Thai businessman, current the Deputy Chief Investment Officer of Rende Development Co., Ltd., and a board member of the Thaicom Foundation.
Their daughter, Thitarn Suksawat, was born on 10 January 2021.
Their son, Pruethasin Suksawat, was born on 1 May 2023, two weeks before the 2023 Thai general election.
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