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Hardline Takaichi wins lower house vote to shatter Japan's glass ceiling and pivot to right-UPDATED

21 October 2025 09:29 (UTC +04:00)

Hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi was set to become Japan's first female prime minister on Tuesday after winning a critical vote in parliament's lower house, APA reports, citing Reuters.

An acolyte of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and an admirer of Britain's Margaret Thatcher, Takaichi received 237 votes in the lower house election to choose the next premier, topping the majority of the 465-seat chamber. Her victory shatters the glass ceiling in a country where men still hold overwhelming sway and puts Japan, a close U.S. ally, on a forceful shift to the right.

Her victory comes after her Liberal Democratic Party, which has governed Japan for most of its postwar history, agreed to a coalition deal with the right-wing Japan Innovation Party, known as Ishin.

Takaichi will likely be approved by the less-powerful upper house and sworn in as Japan's 104th prime minister on Tuesday evening to succeed the incumbent Shigeru Ishiba, who last month announced his resignation to take responsibility for election losses.

But her elevation is unlikely to be feted as a sign of progressive change, marking instead a turn to the right on immigration and social issues. After years of deflation, Japan is now grappling with rising prices, something that has sparked public anger and fuelled support for oppositions groups including the far-right Sanseito party.

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08:27

Japan's parliament is set to elect ultraconservative Sanae Takaichi as the country’s first female prime minister Tuesday, one day after her struggling party struck a coalition deal with a new partner that would pull her governing bloc further to the right, APA reports citing Reuters.

Takaichi will replace Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, ending a three-month political vacuum and wrangling since the Liberal Democratic Party's disastrous election loss in July.

Ishiba, who lasted only one year in office, resigned with his Cabinet earlier Tuesday, paving the way for his successor.

The LDP's off-the-cuff alliance with the Osaka-based rightwing Japan Innovation Party, or Ishin no Kai, ensures her premiership in a vote later in the day because the opposition is not united. Takaichi's untested alliance is still short of a majority in both houses of parliament and they need to court other opposition groups to pass any legislation – a risk that could make her government unstable and short-lived.

“Political stability is essential right now," Takaichi said at Monday's signing ceremony with the JIP leader and Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura. “Without stability, we cannot push measures for a strong economy or diplomacy.”

The two parties signed a coalition agreement on policies underscoring Takaichi’s hawkish and nationalistic views.

Their last-minute deal Monday comes 10 days after the Liberal Democrats lost its longtime partner, the Buddhist-backed Komeito, which has a more dovish and centrist stance. The breakup threatened a change of power for the LDP, which has governed Japan almost uninterrupted for decades.

Once she is elected prime minister, Takaichi, 64, will present a Cabinet with a number of allies of LDP's most powerful kingmaker, Taro Aso, and others who backed her in the party leadership vote.

JIP will not hold ministerial posts in Takaichi's Cabinet until his party is confident about its partnership with the LDP, Yoshimura said.

Takaichi is running on deadline — a major policy speech later this week, talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and regional summits. She needs to quickly tackle rising prices and compile economy-boosting measures by late December to address public frustration.

While she would be the first woman serving as Japan's prime minister, she is in no rush to promote gender equality or diversity.

Takaichi is among Japanese politicians who have stonewalled measures for women’s advancement. Takaichi supports the imperial family’s male-only succession and opposes same-sex marriage and allowing separate surnames for married couples.

A protege of assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Takaichi is expected to emulate his policies including stronger military and economy, as well as revising Japan's pacifist constitution. With a potentially weak grip on power, it’s unknown how much Takaichi would be able to achieve.

When Komeito left the governing coalition, it cited the LDP’s lax response to slush fund scandals that led to their consecutive election defeats.

The centrist party also raised concern about Takaichi’s revisionist view of Japan's wartime past and her regular prayers at Yasukuni Shrine despite protests from Beijing and Seoul that see the visits as lack of remorse about Japanese aggression, as well as her recent xenophobic remarks.

Takaichi has toned down her hawkish rhetorics. On Friday, Takaichi sent a religious ornament instead of going to Yasukuni.