Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has elected Sanae Takaichi as its new leader, placing the 64-year-old on course to become the country’s first female prime minister.
A former government minister, television host and heavy-metal drummer, Takaichi is one of Japan’s most recognisable yet divisive political figures. Known for her staunch conservatism, she represents the LDP’s right-wing faction and faces a formidable list of challenges, from reviving Japan’s sluggish economy and taming inflation to managing a strained relationship with Washington and finalising a pending tariff deal with the Trump administration.
If confirmed by parliament, Takaichi will also need to unify a party shaken by scandals and electoral losses. Her predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, resigned after just over a year in office, following defeats that cost the LDP its majority in both chambers of parliament.
Jeff Kingston, director of Asian Studies at Temple University Japan, told the BBC that Takaichi is unlikely to mend the LDP’s deep internal divisions. “She may win back right-wing voters,” he said, “but at the expense of broader public appeal.”
An admirer of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, Takaichi has long styled herself as Japan’s “Iron Lady”. Yet many women in Japan view her as unsympathetic to gender equality. She has consistently opposed allowing women to retain their maiden names after marriage and rejects same-sex marriage, arguing both go against Japanese tradition.
A protégé of the late Shinzo Abe, she has promised to revive his Abenomics policies of aggressive fiscal spending and low-interest borrowing. She also advocates a tougher security stance and the revision of Japan’s pacifist constitution.
Takaichi is a regular visitor to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, which honours Japan’s war dead, including convicted war criminals—an act that has often sparked diplomatic friction with China and South Korea.
Although she is expected to win parliamentary approval, her confirmation will not be automatic, as the LDP no longer holds a majority in either chamber.
