Anutin Charnvirakul (born 13 September 1966) is a Thai politician and businessman who has served as the 32nd prime minister of Thailand since September 2025. He has also been the leader of the Bhumjaithai Party since 2012 and a member of the House of Representatives since 2019.
Born into a wealthy family in Bangkok, Anutin graduated from Hofstra University and Thammasat University before serving as president of his family's construction firm, Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction (STECON). He began his political career with the Thai Rak Thai Party in 1996 and served as Deputy Minister of Commerce and Deputy Minister of Public Health under Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Following a five-year political ban, he returned to lead the Bhumjaithai Party, succeeding his father, Chavarat Charnvirakul, in 2012. During the second premiership of Prayut Chan-o-cha, he served as deputy prime minister and minister of public health, where he oversaw Thailand's COVID-19 response and the 2022 decriminalization of cannabis. From 2023 to 2025, he served as the Minister of Interior under the premierships of Srettha Thavisin and Paetongtarn Shinawatra.
Anutin ascended to the premiership following a period of intense political shifting in 2025. In June 2025, amid a border crisis with Cambodia, the Bhumjaithai Party withdrew from the governing coalition. Following the removal of Prime Minister Paetongtarn from office by the Constitutional Court in August, Anutin secured an agreement with the People's Party. He was elected prime minister by the National Assembly, with confidence and supply support from the People's Party, on 5 September 2025, leading a government on the condition of drafting a new constitution. On 7 September, King Vajiralongkorn officially endorsed his appointment. On 12 December 2025, he called a snap general election after dissolving the House of Representatives, positioning himself to lead the country through a transitional electoral period. His party placed first in the 2026 election, winning nearly 200 seats.
Early life and education Anutin Charnvirakul was born on 13 September 1966 in Bangkok into a Thai-Chinese family of Cantonese descent, with ancestral roots in Guangdong, China. His nickname is "Noo" (, or ). He is the eldest son of Chavarat Charnvirakul, who served as acting Prime Minister and Minister of Interior during the premiership of Abhisit Vejjajiva, and Tassanee Charnvirakul, the former director and chairwoman of Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction (STECON). His father is also the founder of the company. Anutin has two siblings: a younger brother, Masthawin Charnvirakul, who serves as a director at Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction, and a younger sister, Anilrat Nitisaroj, who is a director of ST Property and Logistics.
Anutin received his early education at Assumption College in Bangkok before continuing his studies in the United States at Worcester Academy in Worcester, Massachusetts. In 1989, he obtained a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. He later earned a Master of Business Administration degree from the Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy, Thammasat University in 1990.
Business and engineering career
Anutin began his career as a production engineer at Mitsubishi Corporation in New York City before returning to Thailand, where he rose to an executive position within the family-owned Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction.
Heir to one of Thailand's largest construction fortunes, Anutin inherited close ties to the family-owned company, which has been involved in numerous major national infrastructure projects, most notably the construction of Suvarnabhumi Airport, the main international airport serving the Bangkok Metropolitan Region, which comprises Bangkok, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, and Nakhon Pathom provinces.
Trained as an engineer, he rose through the company's ranks to become president of Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction, overseeing major projects and operational management, a position he held from 1995 to 2004, before transitioning into full-time politics.
Political career Early political career (1996–2012) In 1996, Anutin entered politics as an adviser to Prachuap Chaiyasan, who was then serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs. His early political career advanced under subsequent administrations, and he later held cabinet positions as Deputy Minister of Public Health from 2004 to 2005 and Deputy Minister of Commerce in 2004, during the premiership of Thaksin Shinawatra. These roles allowed him to gain experience in both public health management and national trade policy.
Following the dissolution of the Thai Rak Thai Party in 2006, Anutin was among 111 former party executives who were subjected to a five-year political ban by the Constitutional Court. The ban, which lasted until 30 May 2012, prohibited him from holding any political office or participating in political activities.
During this period of political hiatus, Anutin shifted his focus back to the private sector. He resumed work in the family business and became the managing director of Sino-Thai Engineering and Construction by February 2012, overseeing major infrastructure and construction projects. In addition to his engineering career, he also expanded into the hospitality and tourism sector, founding the Rancho Charnvee Country Club near Khao Yai National Park in Pak Chong district, Nakhon Ratchasima province, in 2010.
Bhumjaithai Party leadership (2012–present) In 2012, Newin Chidchob, founder of the Bhumjaithai Party, announced his retirement from active politics and publicly endorsed Anutin as his political successor. By this time, Anutin had already become one of the party's most influential figures and principal financiers, playing a crucial role in sustaining the party's operations during a period of political uncertainty. After the expiration of his five-year political ban, Anutin officially joined the Bhumjaithai Party and was unanimously elected as its leader on 14 October 2012.
During the 2013–2014 Thai political crisis, the Bhumjaithai Party maintained a relatively neutral stance, although some members expressed sympathy for the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), which sought to remove the government of Yingluck Shinawatra. Anutin, who was traveling in China at the time, distanced himself from the protests and expressed disapproval of the party's involvement. The PDRC's main agenda focused on opposing the political influence of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Notably, Anutin had previously acted as an intermediary in 2012 by arranging a private overseas meeting between Thaksin and General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, the commander-in-chief of the Royal Thai Army, who had led the 2006 coup d'état that ousted Thaksin's government.
Ahead of the 2019 general election, Anutin was re-elected as Bhumjaithai Party leader in October 2018 and became its official prime ministerial candidate. The party effectively capitalized on the mixed-member proportional representation system introduced under the 2017 constitution, expanding its membership base to approximately three million by late 2018 and positioning itself as a pivotal "kingmaker" in post-election coalition politics.
In the 2019 election, Bhumjaithai won 51 parliamentary seats, solidifying its influence in the Buriram stronghold and becoming the fifth-largest party in the House of Representatives. Following the results, Anutin emphasized his commitment to cooperating with all political parties loyal to the monarchy and supporting policies aimed at national stability. Although the Pheu Thai Party initially excluded Bhumjaithai from its coalition plans, Pheu Thai secretary-general Phumtham Wechayachai later expressed openness to nominating Anutin as a compromise candidate for prime minister.
In the 2023 general election, Anutin once again served as Bhumjaithai's sole prime ministerial candidate. Following the election, which saw the progressive Move Forward Party emerge as the largest faction in the House of Representatives, Anutin reaffirmed his party's conservative stance, declaring that Bhumjaithai would not form a coalition with any party advocating amendments to Section 112 of the Thai Criminal Code, which pertains to lèse-majesté.
Prayut government (2019–2023) COVID-19 pandemic
On 13 January 2020, Thailand reported its first case of COVID-19. The second case was confirmed on 17 January, when Anutin, who became Minister of Public Health in 2019, expressed confidence that Thailand could contain the virus. On the same day, he barred the MS Westerdam from docking in Thailand and prohibited Thai airlines from issuing boarding passes to its passengers. Initially, Anutin downplayed the virus, describing it as a common cold and attributing infections among doctors to insufficient caution. On 29 February, COVID-19 was officially classified as a dangerous communicable disease by the National Committee on Communicable Diseases, which he chaired.
On 19 October 2020, Anutin announced that vaccine rollout would prioritize the elderly and outlined procurement plans from COVAX (40%), AstraZeneca (40%), and other sources, with Siam Bioscience planning local production by mid-2021. The first vaccine shipments arrived on 24 February 2021, and vaccinations began on 28 February, with Anutin among the first recipients. Early rollout targeted hotspots (Bangkok Metropolitan Region and Tak province), tourist provinces, and economically important areas. The program aimed to vaccinate 50 million people by the end of 2021 but faced supply shortages.
In April 2021, Anutin announced that vaccinated residents would receive 'vaccine passports' to facilitate international travel, and quarantine for vaccinated foreign visitors was reduced from 14 to 7 days. Despite Bangkok being a hotspot, residents were allowed to return home for Songkran (Thai New Year), with a caution against large gatherings. Surges in Alpha and Delta cases prompted lockdowns in July 2021, which Anutin described as "worrying," but he later announced no further lockdowns for the Omicron variant.
By 31 October 2022, the global pandemic had improved, leading the government to revoke the pandemic emergency decree on 1 October, downgrade COVID-19 to a communicable disease under surveillance, and halt vaccine procurement as stocks were sufficient.
Anutin faced criticism for his pandemic management. Early on, he made derogatory remarks about foreigners on Twitter, writing in two Twitter posts "farangs," (racist slang term for Caucasians) "never shower and pose health risks to the Thai population" and separately, "Westerners dress dirtily", for which he later apologized. In April 2021, the online campaign MorJaMaiThon (, ) petitioned for his resignation, gathering over 200,000 signatures within two days. On 31 August 2021, a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Anutin, and four other ministers over COVID-19 management was submitted by Sompong Amornwiwat of the Pheu Thai Party, supported by the Move Forward Party; all survived the motion on 4 September.
Legalization of cannabis
As Minister of Public Health, Anutin Charnvirakul actively campaigned for the legalization of cannabis and cannabis cultivation in Thailand. He has been a prominent advocate of medical cannabis and its integration into Thailand's healthcare and economic frameworks.
On 8 May 2022, Anutin announced via Facebook that the government would distribute one million free cannabis plants to households nationwide, beginning on 9 June 2022. This initiative aimed to encourage license-free cultivation of cannabis at the household level. The program was part of a broader strategy to position cannabis as a cash crop and to develop Thailand as a regional hub for medical cannabis cultivation and innovation.