Thailand Elects Conservative Former Deputy Prime Minister Anutin as New Leader

Anutin Charnvirakul Elected as Thailand’s New Prime Minister
Secures Over 247 Votes with Coalition Support
Promises Early Parliamentary Dissolution and Constitutional Reform

Following a Constitutional Court ruling that led to the resignation of the former prime minister, Anutin Charnvirakul (59), a conservative figure from a construction conglomerate family and former deputy prime minister, has been elected as the new prime minister of Thailand.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul attending the House of Representatives meeting held on the 5th (local time) at the Bangkok Parliament in Thailand.

On September 5 (local time), the Thai House of Representatives held a vote to elect the new prime minister, announcing that former Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul was chosen as the new leader. He secured the support of a total of 289 seats, including his own Bhumjaithai Party (69 seats) and the People’s Party, the largest party in parliament (143 seats), surpassing the 247 votes required for election. Prime Minister-designate Anutin will officially take office after receiving approval from King Maha Vajiralongkorn of Thailand.

Prior to the vote, Prime Minister-designate Anutin accepted the People’s Party’s conditions, which included ▲ dissolving parliament within four months of taking office and ▲ pursuing constitutional amendments, thereby gaining their support.

The previous day, he promised reporters that he would abide by the agreements made with the People’s Party over the next four months. He also added that the new government would operate transparently and be subject to public oversight. If these promises are kept, Prime Minister-designate Anutin will dissolve parliament early next year and hold a general election within 60 days thereafter.

The Bhumjaithai Party, which he leads, initially joined the Pheu Thai Party-led coalition government that came to power in 2023, but withdrew from the coalition following the fallout from a leaked phone call between former Prime Minister Paetongtarn and Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen.

From 2019 to 2023, Prime Minister-designate Anutin served as Minister of Public Health in the cabinet of former Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, where he led the country’s COVID-19 response and spearheaded the legalization of medical cannabis.

After the 2023 general election, the Pheu Thai Party, aligned with former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, came to power. However, both former Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and former Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra were forced to step down after about one year in office due to Constitutional Court rulings, resulting in the transfer of power after nearly two years.