Nephew of Former Thai Premier Thaksin Faces Balancing Act to Win Over Electorate

Yodchanan Wongsawat, the Pheu Thai Party’s top candidate for prime minister, faces a delicate balancing act in his quest to run the Southeast Asian country — he must leverage his family’s legacy to win the support of the party faithful, while showing he has fresh ideas to revitalize the economy.

The biomedical engineer and nephew of jailed former Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra, whose family-backed parties have won all but one election since the turn of the century, said he believes he can achieve an annual economic growth rate of 5% by developing the country’s medical sector.