Bangkok, Thailand — In a dramatic turn of events that has sent shockwaves through Thailand’s political establishment, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was removed from office on August 29, 2025, after the Constitutional Court found her guilty of ethical misconduct stemming from a controversial phone call with Cambodia’s former leader, Hun Sen. The ruling, delivered by a 6 to 3 majority, immediately ended her tenure and dissolved her cabinet, plunging the kingdom into yet another period of political uncertainty.
The court’s verdict marks Paetongtarn as the fifth Thai prime minister to be stripped of office by judicial decision since 2008—a pattern that has come to define the country’s turbulent political landscape. In the leaked phone call, which took place on June 15, 2025, as tensions flared along the Thai-Cambodian border, Paetongtarn was heard addressing Hun Sen as “uncle” and criticizing a senior Thai army commander as an “opponent.” According to BBC, she also stated, “If you want anything, just tell me, and I will take care of it,” remarks that quickly became the centerpiece of the case against her.
The border dispute soon escalated into five days of armed conflict, resulting in at least 38 deaths—mostly civilians—and the displacement of hundreds of thousands on both sides. The fallout from the leaked conversation was swift, with dozens of Thai senators filing a petition to the Constitutional Court, claiming Paetongtarn’s actions had undermined the military and violated the ethical standards expected of a prime minister, especially in a time of national crisis. The court concluded that her actions had “caused the public to lose faith and trust” and that she had “lacked demonstrable honesty and integrity.”
Paetongtarn, who had been suspended from her prime ministerial duties on July 1, 2025, pending the court’s decision, did not shy away from addressing the controversy. Speaking to reporters after the verdict, she insisted, “My intentions were for the benefit of the country, not for personal gain, but for the lives of the people, including civilians and soldiers.” She also called for political unity, stating, “In a time like this, everyone must come together to contribute to our nation’s stability.” She further apologized to the Thai people, saying, “I love my nation, religion, and the king. Thank you everyone who gave me knowledge and experience.”
Friday’s ruling not only toppled Paetongtarn but also dissolved her cabinet, with ministers now serving in acting roles until a new prime minister is selected. The immediate aftermath has seen lawmakers scrambling to form a new government, with five eligible candidates—all from a pre-nominated list—vying for the position. Under the 2023 constitution, only those nominated before the last election are eligible, tightening the options for the ruling Pheu Thai Party, which now has just one remaining candidate: 77-year-old Chaikasem Nitisiri, a Thaksin loyalist and former justice minister.
The political drama is deeply intertwined with the fortunes of the Shinawatra family, who have dominated Thai politics for over two decades. Paetongtarn, at 39, was the youngest prime minister in the country’s history, serving just one year after taking office in August 2024. Her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, remains a towering—if divisive—figure. He returned from 16 years in self-imposed exile in 2023 to serve a reduced sentence for corruption, after his Pheu Thai Party won a third of parliamentary seats and formed a coalition with conservative, military-backed parties. Just last week, Thaksin was cleared of a lese majeste charge, but he still faces another case related to his hospital stay upon his return to Thailand.
The Shinawatra family’s political resilience is legendary, but so too is the resistance they face from Thailand’s conservative establishment. As Al Jazeera reports, every prime minister removed by this court since 2008 has been from an administration backed by Thaksin. This has fueled widespread skepticism about the impartiality of the judiciary, with many believing the courts act as instruments of the royalist military elite. “It affirms a troubling pattern in which an unelected panel of judges gets to decide on the country’s political future, overriding any semblance of democratic mandate or accountability to the electorate,” said Napon Jatusripitak, visiting fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore.
Public reaction has been predictably polarized. Some, like Pheu Thai supporter Paisarn Janpen, see the court’s decision as a calculated move to end the Shinawatra dynasty. “There’s no coincidence this is a movement to wipe the Shinawatra family off the map in order for them [conservatives] to be in power,” he told Al Jazeera. Others argue that the ruling was necessary to uphold ethical standards and protect national interests during a period of heightened tension.
The political vacuum left by Paetongtarn’s removal has set the stage for intense maneuvering among Thailand’s major parties. The Bhumjaithai Party, led by Anutin Charnvirakul, has emerged as a potential kingmaker. According to Thitinan Pongsudhirak, professor at Chulalongkorn University, “Bhumjaithai has what appears to be palace backing and the support of the Senate. Anutin can make deals whereby Pheu Thai can still be in government and control, allocate the key choice cabinet portfolios that they want, and Bhumjaithai under Anutin, a coalition government with Pheu Thai can run out the clock into the next election, possibly, potentially.”
However, the road ahead is anything but clear. Anutin recently quit the coalition and resigned as deputy prime minister and interior minister over the leaked phone call, complicating the search for a stable government. Should parliament fail to agree on a new prime minister, a snap election may be called—a prospect that brings its own risks, given the country’s history of coups, court interventions, and party dissolutions. As CNN notes, the establishment may still prefer a weakened Pheu Thai as a buffer against the more radical opposition People’s Party, which has campaigned for deep reforms to the country’s ruling institutions.
Thailand’s political system remains in a “straitjacket,” as Thitinan puts it, where elected governments are repeatedly overthrown by non-elected forces. “The question to me today is not about Paetongtarn being removed, but why is it that Thailand keeps having its prime ministers suspended and being removed? And the answer is that the conservative forces do not want reform and progress,” he said.
For now, the kingdom stands at a crossroads, with no obvious successor to Paetongtarn and no clear coalition configuration stable enough to govern effectively. As lawmakers jostle for position and the public watches with a mix of hope and skepticism, Thailand’s future remains as uncertain as ever, caught between its dynastic past and the persistent demands for democratic progress.