Hardline conservative Sanae Takaichi appears set to become Japan’s first female premier as the governing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) prepares to sign a coalition deal.
Hirofumi Yoshimura, coleader of the Japan Innovation Party, known as Ishin, said on Monday that his right-wing party was prepared to back a Takaichi premiership, providing the LDP with the support it needs to remain in power.
The LDP had appeared on the cusp of losing power when Japan’s legislature meets for an extraordinary session to vote for the next prime minister on Tuesday.
“I told Takaichi that we should move forward together,” Yoshimura told reporters in Osaka as he made the 11th-hour announcement. He added that he would meet Takaichi at 6pm local time (09:00 GMT) to sign the agreement.
The deal clears the way for Takaichi to win Tuesday’s vote, which will see her replace incumbent Shigeru Ishiba, who has resigned.
Political turmoil
Takaichi, a 64-year-old China hawk from the right-wing party, became leader of the LDP earlier this month.
Her bid to become Japan’s first female premier was disrupted when the centrist Komeito party ended a 26-year alliance with the LDP.
Coming just days after Takaichi’s election as the LDP leader, the move plunged the country into a political crisis.
The Buddhist-backed Komeito said the LDP had failed to tighten funding rules in the wake of a slush fund scandal. It was also unnerved by Takaichi’s ultraconservative positions, including a history of harsh rhetoric on China, despite Takaichi having toned that down recently.
The deal between the LDP and Ishin would deliver a combined 231 seats in the lower house of parliament, two short of a majority, meaning the new coalition would still need support from other parties to push through legislation.
But should the vote for Ishiba’s replacement go to a second-round run-off, Takaichi would only need support from more MPs than the other candidate.
Muted response from women
Despite Takaichi appearing set to break the glass ceiling to become the first female premier, many Japanese women were not celebrating her rise.
“The prospect of a first female prime minister doesn’t make me happy,” sociologist Chizuko Ueno posted on X, saying her leadership “doesn’t mean Japanese politics becomes kinder to women”.
Chiyako Sato, a political commentator for the Mainichi newspaper, said Takaichi’s policies were “extremely hawkish and I doubt she would consider policies to recognize diversity”.
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