A political novice with no government experience, Paetongtarn took power last August after her predecessor, Srettha Thavisin, was expelled from office in a shock decision by the same court.
Her main qualification: being the daughter of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a polarising billionaire who has loomed over Thai politics for a quarter of a century.
With Paetongtarn’s unceremonious exit, six prime ministers either from the Shinawatra clan or appointed by the family have been pushed out of power by court decisions or military coups, underlining Thaksin’s decades-long tussle with the country’s conservative establishment.
Although popular at the start of her term, with 31.35 per cent of respondents nationwide backing her as the leading prime ministerial choice in September 2024, Paetongtarn’s standing nosedived to 9.2 per cent by June, according to the National Institute of Development Administration’s surveys.
In the end, however, her undoing turned out to be the leaked audio of a call with Hun Sen in June, where she appeared to be subservient to the veteran Cambodian politician and criticised a popular Thai general, immediately drawing a public backlash.
A petition filed to the Constitutional Court by 36 senators accused Paetongtarn of dishonesty and breaching ethical standards, leading initially to her suspension and eventually, her dismissal from office.
Paetongtarn publicly apologised over the leaked call even before she was suspended from office, insisting she had intended to de-escalate a territorial row between Thailand and Cambodia.
A tense troop build-up along the frontier ultimately led to a five-day conflict in late July involving fighter jets and artillery barrages, the worst fighting between the neighbours in over a decade.
