Japan’s PM Sanae Takaichi secures a strong election win, focusing on a hardline China stance and workaholic reputation rather than gender politics.
TOKYO: Sanae Takaichi has entrenched her leadership just four months after becoming Japan’s first woman prime minister. Her ruling bloc secured a resounding victory in snap lower house elections, likely with a two-thirds majority.
This powerful mandate positions her to push through a legislative agenda defined by a hardline stance on China and economic security. The staunch conservative, who admires Margaret Thatcher, has shown little appetite for framing her premiership around gender.
Instead, her workaholic reputation and deft political touch have shaped her fledgling leadership. Her approach has won endorsement from US President Donald Trump, whom she courted with gifts ranging from a golf bag to American beef.
Takaichi inherited a struggling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) deserted by voters over inflation and a slush fund scandal. As prime minister, she has sounded tough on immigration and has not shied away from incurring the wrath of China.
She suggested in November that Japan could intervene militarily if China ever launched an attack on Taiwan. The remark sparked a diplomatic row, with China announcing a broad ban on the export to Japan of “dual-use” goods with potential military applications.
As a former economic security minister, she was a vocal critic of Beijing and its military build-up. She has been supportive of Taiwan, saying during a visit that it was “crucial” to strengthen security cooperation between Taipei and Tokyo.
Once a drummer in a college heavy metal band, she put her musical skills to use last month. She played two K-pop songs during a session with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, earning widespread online praise.
Despite declaring Thatcher as her political idol, she has shown little sign of leveraging her gender. Takaichi’s views on gender put her on the right of an already conservative LDP.
She opposes revising a 19th century law requiring married couples to share the same surname. Despite a campaign promise to improve the gender balance in her administration, she appointed just two other women to her 19-strong cabinet.
She supports aggressive monetary easing and big fiscal spending, echoing the “Abenomics” of her mentor Shinzo Abe. Takaichi has so far lived up to her vow to “work, work, work, work and work,” reportedly sleeping only between two and four hours a night.
