The House of Representatives on Friday elected Pheu Thai Party leader Paetongtarn Shinawatra as the 31st prime minister of Thailand.

Pheu Thai on Friday morning nominated Ms Paetongtarn as the sole prime ministerial candidate when the House began meeting at 10am.

The motion was supported by 291 MPs. Ms Paetongtarn, 37, was not at the meeting.

There are 493 elected House representatives. Ms Paetongtarn needed a majority of 248 votes. A total of 489 MPs were present on Friday, with 319 votes for Paetongtarn, 145 votes against and 27 abstentions 

The 37-year-old daughter of former premier and Pheu Thai patriarch Thaksin Shinawatra becomes the youngest prime minister in the country’s history. She succeeded Srettha Thavisin, who was dismissed on Wednesday by the Constitutional Court.

Ms Paetongtarn is the third member of the Shinawatra family to hold the job after Thaksin and her aunt Yingluck. Thaksin’s brother-in-law Somchai Wongsawat also served briefly in the role in 2008. 

The People's Party said on Thursday that it would not vote for the Pheu Thai Party's prime ministerial candidate.

The Democrat Party with 25 MPs voted unanimously to abstain from the vote.

The People's Party is the latest incarnation of the Move Forward Party (MFP), which was dissolved by the Constitutional Court last week.