Thailand’s prime minister is out of a job, and nobody can say yet who replaces her.
The Constitutional Court dismissed Paetongtarn Shinawatra on 29 August 2025, six judges to three, after finding that a leaked June phone call with Hun Sen broke ethical standards for the office. She had held the job for one year. The court said she had put her own interests ahead of the country’s during the call.
Judges looked at the audio, in which Paetongtarn spoke with the former Cambodian leader as the two countries edged toward armed conflict. The Japan Times said she appeared to kowtow to him. Kaohoon International reported the court found her exchange did not show the negotiating skill she claimed. China Daily noted that in the clip she described a Thai army commander as an “opponent.” Fighting broke out weeks later and went on for five days.
How it got to court
A group of 36 senators filed the complaint. They argued the recording showed a lack of responsibility, raised serious concerns over Thai sovereignty, the military and the people, and pointed to a personal tie to Hun Sen that could cut against national interests. Paetongtarn confirmed the recording was real. She called the conversation a private attempt to keep the peace and defend Thai sovereignty. The court suspended her on 1 July while it considered the case.
After the verdict she issued a statement accepting it. Her actions, she said, had always come from a wish to serve the country, and she wished the next government well.
What happens next
Her removal also ended her cabinet. Deputy Premier Phumtham Wechayachai and the remaining ministers will run the government in a caretaker role until the House of Representatives picks a new prime minister, which China Daily said could happen as soon as the following week.
The names in circulation: Chaikasem Nitisiri of Pheu Thai; Prayut Chan-o-cha, a privy councillor and former prime minister; Pirapan Salirathavibhaga of the United Thai Nation Party; Jurin Laksanawisit of the Democrat Party; and Anutin Charnvirakul, who leads Bhumjaithai.
Stithorn Thananithichot, a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University, did not expect a quick fix. “Appointing a new prime minister… will be difficult and may take considerable time,” he said. “It’s not easy for all parties to align their interests. Pheu Thai will be at a disadvantage.”
Paetongtarn, 39, led Pheu Thai and became the youngest prime minister in the country’s history, elected the previous August as the 31st. She is the youngest daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The Japan Times counted her as the sixth premier from or backed by the family to be pushed out by the military or the courts.
Sources
- Thai court ousts PM Paetongtarn over ethics breach
- Thai Constitutional Court Ousts Paetongtarn Shinawatra as Prime Minister over Ethics Breach – KAOHOON INTERNATIONAL
- Thai court ousts PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra for ethics violation
