The 37-year-old Paetongtarn Shinawatra, chairwoman of the ruling Pheu Thai party and heiress of a wealthy dynasty, won a vote in parliament this morning (local time) with a clear majority. She will become the kingdom’s youngest prime minister ever.
Paetongtarn is the daughter of billionaire and former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and the niece of former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. Both were in power for several years but were then ousted by military coups and went into exile.
Second woman at the top
After her aunt, Paetongtarn is only the second woman to lead the Southeast Asian country. The ruling coalition, which has a comfortable majority in parliament, nominated her as the only candidate on Thursday. Srettha Thavisin (62) was removed from office on Wednesday after less than a year in office following a lawsuit filed by 40 senators – for an alleged breach of professional ethics.
