Thailand's Parliament Votes in Paetongtarn Shinawatra as New Prime Minister
Two days after Thailand's Constitutional Court removed former Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, the country's parliament has elected Paetongtarn Shinawatra as the government's new leader.
Transcript
00:00Thailand's new Prime Minister Peh Tong-Than Sinawat faces the crowd for the first time
00:07in her new role.
00:09She takes over two days after former Prime Minister Setsat Thavisin was ousted by the
00:13Constitutional Court.
00:15I hope that I can do my best to, you know, make the country go forward.
00:25That's what I try to do.
00:29Right now, of course, today I feel very honored and I feel very happy.
00:3537-year-old Peh Tong-Than is the daughter of Thailand's former Premier Thaksin Sinawat.
00:44She is the third member of her family to lead the country and the youngest Prime Minister
00:48in the country's history.
00:49Peh Tong-Than was a candidate for the ruling Phuet Thai party last year, but that party
00:54shifted its support to Setat.
00:57Less than a year later, she's now taken his place as Prime Minister, with the support
01:00of nearly two-thirds of the House, including party members and its partners, against no
01:06other alternative candidates.
01:08Peh Tong-Than Sinawat has received more than half of the votes of the members of the House
01:18Now the country's future is in Peh Tong-Than's hands, but she faces an uphill battle as her
01:45position faces heavy scrutiny from both the military and the monarchy, and the constitutional
01:50court which supports it, all of which her father's party has aimed to appease in recent
01:55years to varying degrees of success.
01:58As Peh Tong-Than takes office, Thailand will be watching to see how long she's able to
02:02hold the people's support while balancing demands from the military and monarchy.
02:08Devon Tsai and Tiffany Wong for Taiwan Plus.