Sanae Takaichi

(born 7 March 1961) is a Japanese politician serving as the prime minister of Japan and president of the Liberal Democratic Party since 2025. She is the country's first female prime minister and LDP president. Before becoming prime minister and the party's first female president, she has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2005, having served before from 1993 to 2003. She is a member of the far-right organization Nippon Kaigi.

Born in Yamatokōriyama, Nara Prefecture, Takaichi started her career as a news anchor. In the late 1980s, she worked as a fellow for the United States Congress. In 1993, she was elected to the House of Representatives as an independent, however switched parties to become a member of the New Frontier Party.

Before, Takaichi had jobs in the cabinet of Prime Ministers Shinzo Abe and Fumio Kishida. She was known for being the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications during the Abe government from 2019 to 2020. Takaichi ran for President of the Liberal Democratic Party three times in 2021, 2024 and successfully in 2025. Takaichi is a hard-line conservative and hard-line nationalist. She has supported social conservative views including opposition to same-sex marriage and support for requiring couples to share a last name after marriage.

In October 2025, Takaichi defeated Agricultural Minister Shinjirō Koizumi in the run-off of the 2025 Liberal Democratic presidential election. This made Takaichi the first female LDP president and after being confirmed by the Japanese Diet, she became the first female Prime Minister of Japan. As prime minister, she led the LDP to a historic landslide victory in the 2026 general election, with the party keeping its majority in the House and setting a new postwar record for the most seats won by a single party with 316 seats. Since her election as prime minister, Takaichi has been seen as one of the most powerful women in the world.

Early life
Takaichi was born and raised in the city of Yamatokōriyama in Nara, Japan. Takaichi graduated from Unebi Senior High School before going to Kobe University and the Matsushita Institute of Government and Management. During her youth, she played the drums and heavy metal music.

In 1987, she moved to the United States to work for Democratic U.S. Representative Pat Schroeder as a Congressional Fellow. She returned to Japan in 1989 and wrote a book about her experience in the U.S. Congress.

In March 1989, she became a TV Asahi anchor and she co-hosted the station's "Kodawari TV Pre★Stage" with Renho.

Political career
Takaichi was first elected to the House of Representatives in the 1993 election as an independent. In the following year she joined the minor "Liberals" party led by Koji Kakizawa, which soon merged into the New Frontier Party.

In 2002 she was appointed as the Senior Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry under Junichiro Koizumi.

In the 2003 election, she lost in the Nara 1st district by Democratic Party lawmaker Sumio Mabuchi. She moved to the nearby city of Ikoma and won a seat representing the Nara 2nd district in the 2005 election. In 2004, while she was out of the Diet, she taught economics at Kinki University.
On 26 August 2021, Takaichi announced her candidacy for the Liberal Democratic leadership in the 2021 election. She lost the election to former Foreign Affairs Minister Fumio Kishida on 29 September.

In March 2023, opposition upper house member Hiroyuki Konishi said that he had gotten a document from the former administration of Shinzō Abe suggesting intentions to get involved in the freedom of broadcasting by putting political pressure on broadcasters that were against the Abe government and to the Liberal Democratic Party. Takaichi was Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications during the time. Takaichi said that the document was fake and promised to resign from the Diet if the document was proven to be real. Several days later, the Internal Affairs ministry confirmed the document was real and opposition Diet members called on Takaichi to resign. Following the announcement Takaichi went back on her plans to quit and said that parts of the document talking about her were incorrect.

In August 2024, Takaichi announced she planned to run for the Liberal Democratic leadership election a second time to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. She formally announced her campaign on 9 September. On 27 September, she made it to the run-off but narrowly lost to Shigeru Ishiba.

Takaichi has called British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher a role model. Takaichi also has the nickname "Iron Lady," just like Thatcher.

Former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida may have nicknamed her "Taliban Takaichi", while another anonymous senior LDP legislator called the members of the hard right and Takaichi a “cancer" within the party.

Prime Minister (2025–present)
2025 LDP leadership election

On 18 September 2025, Takaichi announced her candidacy for LDP president in the 2025 election, following Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's resignation. In early polling, Takaichi and Agricultural Minister Shinjirō Koizumi were seen as the early frontrunners of the election. On 4 October, election day, Takaichi came in first place during the first round of voting with 183 (31.07%) of the vote. Agricultural Minister Shinjirō Koizumi came in second with 164 (27.84%) of the vote, meaning that both Koizumi and Takaichi advanced to the run-off to elect the party leader. Takaichi would go on to defeat Koizumi in the run-off by a 54% to 46% margin.

On 4 October 2025, Takaichi was elected as the first female President of the Liberal Democratic Party, replacing outgoing President and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. At first, it was difficult for Takaichi to get the Diet votes she needed to become prime minister after the LDP's coalition with Komeito ended. However on 16 October, Takaichi was able to form a new coalition with the Japan Innovation Party, which gave her enough support for be confirmed as prime minister. On 21 October, Takaichi was confirmed as the prime minister-designate during a special session of the Japanese Diet. This made Takaichi the country's first female prime minister.

Tenure
After becoming prime minister, Takaichi formed her cabinet. At first, she said that she would hire more women to her cabinet than ever before, only two would join: Satsuki Katayama as Japan's first female finance minister, and Kimi Onoda as economic security minister. In her first press conference, Takaichi said that she focused on "equality of opportunity" above all else, and had picked ministers based on their qualifications, not gender.

The cabinet was viewed as supporting party unity, with people who ran against Takaichi receiving key positions: Toshimitsu Motegi as foreign minister, Yoshimasa Hayashi as internal affairs minister and Shinjiro Koizumi as defense minister. Former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's close advisor Ryosei Akazawa was promoted to minister of economy, trade and industry. 

A week after becoming prime minister, Takaichi made her first diplomatic trip when she visited Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the 47th ASEAN Summit. She had meetings with Philippine President Bongbong Marcos, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.  On 28 October 2025, Takaichi met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Tokyo where the two signed agreements on trade, minerals, nuclear technology and rare earths. During their visit at the US Yokosuka Naval Base, aboard the USS George Washington (CVN-73), Takaichi promised make the relationship between the United States and Japan stronger. She also said she would recommend Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.

In opinion polls done during late October–early November 2025, Takaichi's government received the approval of between 65% and 83% of respondents, among the highest such ratings of any government in twenty years.

On 23 January 2026, Takaichi dissolved the House of Representatives, allowing a general election to be held on 8 February. The election resulted in a historic landslide victory for the LDP, with the party winning an outright two-thirds supermajority and keeping its majority status in the chamber. The LDP's total of at least 316 seats is the most ever won by a party in Japanese electoral history. Takaichi's popularity was said to be an important reason for the LDP's landslide victory.

Personal life
Takaichi married Taku Yamamoto, a fellow member of the House of Representatives, in 2004. The couple did not have any children of their own, but Takaichi adopted her husband's three children from another marriage. They agreed to a divorce in July 2017. However, they fixed their marriage in December 2021. She has four grandchildren through her stepchildren.

After having surgery for a gynecological disease, Takaichi found it difficult to get pregnant and give birth, and gave up on having children. In 2007, she said, "I want society to be welcoming to infertile women."

References

Other websites

 Official website 

Category:1961 births
Category:Living people
Category:Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) politicians
Category:Politicians from Nara Prefecture
Category:Internal Affairs and Communications ministers of Japan
Category:Japanese academics
Category:Television news anchors
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Category:Prime ministers of Japan
Category:Current national leaders