Pheu Thai leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra was elected by parliament as the 31st prime minister of Thailand, becoming the third member of the Shinawatra family to hold the top job, following her father, Thaksin, and her aunt, Yingluck.
Paetongtarn succeeds Srettha Thavisin, who was ousted by the Constitutional Court this week.
She was the only candidate nominated for the position. She won with 319 votes in favour, 145 votes against and 27 abstentions. She needed at least 248 votes to win.
Nicknamed “Ung Ing”, Paetongtarn, 37, becomes the youngest prime minister of Thailand and the second female.
She is the third child of Thaksin Shinawatra and Khunying Potjaman Na Pombejra. Paetongtarn gave birth to her second child during the general election campaign in May last year.
Paetongtarn was not in Parliament today for her nomination, because she is not an MP. Reports indicate that she is following developments from the former Voice TV station facility.
Her victory was assured, though, as the leaders of the nine government coalition parties appeared yesterday at a press conference, hosted by Pheu Thai, to announce her nomination.
The party leaders expressed their unanimous support for Paetongtarn and confirmed that they would not nominate anyone to compete against her.
Her candidacy came as a surprise, however, as Thaksin, her father, had hosted a meeting of government whip chiefs on Wednesday, during which they agreed to nominate Chaikasem Nitisiri, a previous Pheu Thai prime ministerial candidate.
On Thursday, however, there was a plot twist, when a meeting of Pheu Thai MPs at the party’s headquarters resolved to nominate Paetongtarn instead.
She told the press conference that she offered herself for election as prime minister and her parents will support her, especially her father, a convicted and jailed former PM.
