Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Sanae Takaichi was elected as Japan’s next Prime Minister on October 21, following a runoff election in the Parliament. She is also the first woman to assume this role. The Upper House has chosen Takaichi as Japan’s next Prime Minister, affirming her rise to the position. She received 125 votes in the Upper House — just one vote above the simple majority necessary for victory. Previously, she secured 237 votes in the Lower House, exceeding the required majority of 233. A former television anchor, Takaichi entered Japanese politics in 1993, winning a seat in the Lower House as an independent. The 64-year-old lawmaker currently represents her home prefecture of Nara. Takaichi joined Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party in 1996 and entered the Cabinet for the first time under former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. She held the position of the Minister of State for Okinawa and Northern Territories Affairs. Later, she went on to become the first woman to chair the LDP’s Policy Research Council.
From 2022 to 2024, Takaichi was Japan’s Economic Security Minister. She also holds the record as the longest-serving Minister for Internal Affairs, a post she held in several tenures. Takaichi, a prominent voice of the LDP’s conservative wing advocating its causes for a long time, was on Saturday elected as the leader of the LDP after receiving 185 votes. She defeated Shinjiro Shinjiro, who garnered 156 votes in a runoff after none of the five candidates in the party leadership race secured a majority in the initial round of voting.
