Paetongtarn will oversee the Culture Ministry, a move that may allow her to remain in the cabinet in the event a court suspends her from prime ministerial duties in a petition seeking her removal.
The reshuffle — Paetongtarn’s first since taking office in August — may help the prime minister shore up support from smaller parties remaining in her ruling coalition after Bhumjaithai Party, the second-largest group, departed last month and left her ruling bloc with a slim parliamentary majority.
Meanwhile, activists and opponents are pressing ahead with legal challenges and Bhumjaithai is planning to raise a no-confidence motion next week.
Paetongtarn has vowed to complete her two-year term despite mounting pressure. Signs of coalition unity could help reassure investors amid prolonged political uncertainty. Thai stocks, among the world’s worst performers this year, have fallen 22%.
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Bhumjaithai Party’s departure in the wake of a leaked phone call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen — in which the premier appeared to criticise her army over border tensions with the neighbour — opened up eight vacancies in the cabinet. But it reduced the ruling bloc’s majority to about 255 seats in the 495-member parliament.
Paetongtarn, the third member of the powerful Shinawatra family to lead Thailand, became prime minister last year after her predecessor was removed by the courts over an ethics violation. Her administration has struggled to rein in record-high household debt and stimulate growth, despite distributing billions in cash to boost consumption.
Thailand is betting on talks with the Trump administration to bring down a punitive 36% tariff on its exports, which threatens to shave off about one percentage point of its projected growth this year. The country’s economic outlook is further clouded by a decline in Chinese tourist arrivals and weakening private investment.
The cabinet changes signal former leader Thaksin Shinawatra’s bid to strengthen the position of his family-backed Pheu Thai Party as the government enters the second half of its four-year tenure. The party now controls most of the key ministries with significant state budget including finance, foreign, transport and interior.
