Youngest Thai PM hopes to build people's confidence

Paetongtarn Shinawatra, 37, elected with nearly two-thirds of parliamentary votes

- Tan Hui Yee

BANGKOK - Thailand's new Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said she was "very honoured" and "very happy" to be elected by lawmakers on Aug 16, in a vote held two days after former premier Srettha Thavisin was dismissed from the post.

The 37-year-old Pheu Thai Party leader, and daughter of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, garnered 319 votes, representing nearly two-thirds of the House of Representatives.

Ms Paetongtarn replaced Mr Srettha, also from Pheu Thai, after he was dismissed by the Constitutional Court for the wrongful appointment of a Cabinet minister.

Mr Srettha's dismissal as prime minister, after barely one year in office, also meant that his entire Cabinet would need to vacate their posts after a new line-up is selected by Ms Paetongtarn.

The 11-party governing coalition led by Pheu Thai agreed to support Ms Paetongtarn's bid for premiership on the eve of the parliamentary vote, following urgent negotiations.

She will be Thailand's youngest prime minister and is the third member of the influential Shinawatra clan to take the top job, after Mr Thaksin and her aunt Yingluck Shinawatra. Mr Thaksin served from 2001 to 2006, while Yingluck was in office from 2011 to 2014.