Who is Sanae Takaichi? The ‘Iron Lady’ and first female Prime Minister of Japan

In a surprising turn of events in the political history of Japan, Sanae Takaichi, a conservative veteran long linked with the right wing, was elected as the first female prime minister of the nation on Tuesday. She ended nearly eight decades of uninterrupted male leadership in Japan.

The 64-year-old Takaichi won the election after she received 237 votes in the 465-member Lower House and succeeded Shigeru Ishiba, who resigned last month after the electoral setbacks of his party. Her appointment was confirmed by the Upper House and paved the way for her swearing-in as the 104th prime minister of Japan.

Sanae Takaichi's background and political career

Sanae Takaichi was born in Nara Prefecture in 1961 and graduated from Kobe University. Her father was an office worker and her mother a police officer. The background of Takaichi is more modest than compared of several senior LDP members, who often hail from elite institutions such as the University of Tokyo or Harvard Kennedy School.

Politics was far from her early life as she was a passionate heavy metal drummer, known for breaking drumsticks mid-performance and always carrying spares. She also enjoyed scuba diving and cars; her cherished Toyota Supra is now showcased in a Nara museum, according to a report in the BBC.

Before stepping into politics, Takaichi briefly worked as a television presenter. Her political awakening came in the 1980s, amid tense US-Japan trade relations. Seeking to grasp how Americans viewed Japan, she joined the office of Democratic congresswoman Patricia Schroeder, a vocal critic of Japan at the time.

After Takaichi witnessed mixing up Japanese, Chinese and Korean languages and cuisine, as well as observing Japan being often grouped together with China and South Korea, she fought her first parliamentary election in 1992 as an independent but lost.

Later, she won a seat a year later and joined the LDP in 1996. Since then, she has been continuously elected as an MP 10 times, losing only once. With this achievement, she built a reputation as the most outspoken conservative voices of the LDP.

Including minister for economic security, state minister for trade and industry, and a record-breaking tenure as minister for internal affairs and communications, Takaichi has also held several roles of senior government.

Takaichi made her first bid for LDP leadership in 2021 but was defeated by Fumio Kishida. She ran again in 2024, leading in the initial round of voting yet ultimately losing to Shigeru Ishiba. On her third attempt this year, she finally triumphed, positioning herself to become Japan’s first female prime minister pending parliamentary approval.