Yingluck may be Thailand's first female PM

Yingluck may be Thailand's first female PM

Puea Thai, the opposition party allied to ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, won a landslide victory in fractious Thailand's elections.

The party easily garnered the majority needed to form a new government on Sunday.

Yingluck casting her vote at a polling station in Bangkok (Photo: AP / Apichart Weerawong)

This outcome would set the stage for Thaksin's youngest sister - 44-year-old Yingluck - to become the Southeast Asian kingdom's first female prime minister.

Such a large mandate to govern could also make it easier to navigate a way out of out of the political crisis that has plagued Thailand since Thaksin was overthrown in a military coup five years ago.

Yingluck has long been seen as the front-runner in the race.

Her popularity is largely due to that of her exiled billionaire brother - who is barred from politics after a corruption conviction.

Thaksin's ascent to power in 2001 changed Thailand forever, touching off a societal schism between the country's haves and long-silent have-nots.

The marginalised rural poor hail his populism, while the elite establishment sees him as a corrupt, autocratic threat to the revered monarchy and the status quo.

That schism has played out through pro- and anti-Thaksin street protests since the 2006 coup, and on Sunday it hit the ballot box.

The vote, many believe, is largely about the divisive legacy he left behind.
Source: AP