Hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi elected Japan’s first female leader

By Jessie Yeung, Hanako Montgomery, CNN

Tokyo (CNN) — Staunch conservative Sanae Takaichi was elected Japan’s first female prime minister by parliament on Tuesday, in a landmark moment for the historically patriarchal country where both politics and workplaces are dominated by older men.

Takaichi steps into the role as Japan faces mounting economic woes and a fractured politics, and just days before US President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit.

The 64-year old Takaichi, who is a heavy metal drummer and motorcycle enthusiast, grew up in Nara near Osaka. Her arrival at the pinnacle of Japanese politics tops a remarkable rise, from TV presenter to flag bearer of traditional and nationalist ideals.

In her first news conference as prime minister on Tuesday night, Takaichi focused heavily on economic issues and advancing Japan’s interests, saying that she will “work boldly and tirelessly, unafraid of change” for “the nation and its people.”

A protege of assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Takaichi has laid claim to his conservative legacy. She becomes the fourth prime minister to hold office since he stepped down in 2020, reflecting the political deadlock in the world’s fourth largest economy.

Like Abe, she supports revising Japan’s pacifist constitution and has visited a controversial war shrine that includes the names of those convicted of war crimes during World War II – both issues that spark anger in neighboring China and South Korea, who are also vital trade partners for Japan.

She also opposes same-sex marriage, and a growing movement to allow married couples to use separate surnames.

Some of these stances, such as her hawkish views on China, could complicate Japan’s regional relationships. And within Japan, some worry about her economic proposals – to spend big and cut taxes – as the country struggles with sky-high inflation and living costs.

She has openly aspired to be like Margaret Thatcher, the first woman to become British prime minister – known as the “Iron Lady,” a nickname that has since been used for Takaichi herself.

“Like Thatcher, (Takaichi) is a conservative and she is also a woman in a male-dominated world,” said Shihoko Goto, vice president of programs at the Foreign Policy Research Institute.

“That said, Thatcher was then – Japan is now. It’s facing a great deal of change, it’s facing a lot of internal domestic pressure … She will be expected, first and foremost, to deal with those immediate threats.”

In her news conference Tuesday night, Takaichi said that she will “build a strong Japanese economy and protect Japan’s national interests at all costs through diplomacy and security.”

Vowing to “reclaim Japan’s diplomacy and let it flourish at the center of the world,” Takaichi said that “Japan faces a major crisis from within and without. There is no time to stand still.”

She noted that she will soon be meeting with Trump, adding that she will work to “elevate Japan-US relations to new heights.”

Japan’s neighbors offered lukewarm responses to news of her win on Tuesday, with China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying it had “noted the election results” and hoped for a “mutually beneficial relationship.”

A South Korean foreign ministry spokesperson similarly promised to continue cooperating with “Japan’s new Cabinet,” without naming Takaichi, according to news agency Yonhap.

An unconventional start

Unlike many of her male peers, Takaichi doesn’t come from a political dynasty. She was born in Nara, a city frequented by tourists for its wild deer, to a father who worked for a car company and a mother who was a police officer.

Before entering politics, she interned for a US Democratic congresswoman and worked as a TV commentator.

Since joining the ruling LDP party, Takaichi has been elected as a member of parliament nine times. She’s held multiple cabinet posts, including on gender equality and demographic issues, and chaired the party’s Policy Research Council. Most recently, she served as minister of economic security under the administration of Fumio Kishida.

She was elected leader of the LDP earlier in October, beating more moderate candidates. It suggested a rightward turn for the scandal-hit party, which suffered bruising losses in the last two parliamentary elections after discontented voters switched to new far-right groups.

But now as prime minister, she’ll have to answer to the populace of 120 million Japanese. Tackling the high price of goods will be one of her first challenges; for instance, the price of rice, a staple food in Japan, has almost doubled from last year.

There’s also the ever-present headache of Japan’s declining birthrate, shrinking workforce and swelling elderly population. There’s a growing public backlash against mass immigration. And then there is the Trump administration and its whiplash tariffs, which shook Asian economies earlier this year.

There’s also the immense challenge of winning back public trust, with the LDP experiencing its biggest crisis in decades and being stripped of its parliamentary majority under former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba after a political slush fund scandal.

Simply being elected as the leader of the ruling party would usually have been enough to secure the premiership. But Takaichi’s path to power was complicated; besides losing its majority, the LDP also lost its coalition partner of 26 years, Komeito, which terminated the alliance when she won the leadership race.

That left the LDP scrambling to find a new coalition partner – and it ultimately joined forces with the opposition Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) ahead of Tuesday’s vote.

Takaichi’s new cabinet will also include a female finance minister – another first for Japan. Satsuki Katayama, who also worked as a minister in Abe’s government, was appointed to the role on Tuesday, according to Reuters.

“Takaichi’s rise to become Japan’s first female prime minister is more about remaking party politics than transforming foreign policy,” said Leif-Eric Easley, professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.

“She is tasked with rebranding rather than revolutionizing her party, along with co-opting smaller parties in a realignment of legislative coalitions.”

Takaichi’s party hopes she can be the answer to their recent unpopularity. But with a revolving door of prime ministers in recent years, Japan’s so-called ‘Iron Lady’ will need to deliver results quickly to stay in power.

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CNN’s Yumi Asada and Catherine Nicholls contributed to this report.