Who is the current Prime Minister of Japan?
Prime Minister of Japan
To date, 62 people have served this position. The current Prime Minister is Shinzō Abe, who re-took office on December 26, 2012. He is the first former Prime Minister to return to office since 1948, and the 5th longest serving Prime Minister to date.
Minoru Terada
Terada's wife Keiko is a granddaughter of Hayato Ikeda, former Prime minister of Japan. He was elected for the first time in 2004, when he left the ministry after the death of his uncle on January 28; Yukihiko Ikeda, LDP, was a former Foreign Minister, and the son-in-law of Hayato Ikeda.
Keizō Obuchi
In 1998, Obuchi's time came when the LDP lost its majority in the House of Councillors. Hashimoto resigned as LDP president, and Obuchi was named his successor. When the time came for the Diet to designate a new Prime Minister, Obuchi became only the second LDP candidate not to win the support of the upper house. However, the Constitution of Japan stipulates that if the two chambers cannot agree on a choice for Prime Minister, the choice of the House of Representatives is deemed to be that of the Diet. With the LDP's large majority in the lower house, Obuchi was formally appointed Prime Minister on 30 July.
Yasuo Fukuda
Following the resignation of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, Fukuda was elected as President of the Liberal Democratic Party and became Prime Minister in September 2007. Fukuda was the first son of a former Japanese Prime Minister (Takeo Fukuda) to also take up the post.
2017 Japanese general election
The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe began publicly discussing the possibility of an election in mid-September 2017, as the North Korea crisis was ongoing. Continuing the momentum of her Tokyo election victory, Koike announced the formation of a new national political party, Kibō no Tō (Party of Hope), on 25 September. Abe called the general election just hours later on the same day. Soon after the Party of Hope was established, Democratic Party leader Seiji Maehara sought to merge with Kibō no Tō. Maehara's decision was strongly criticised by the liberal wing of the party, whose candidacies were rejected by Koike. The liberal wing surrounding the deputy president Yukio Edano announced the formation of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan on 2 October 2017. Opposition politicians claim Abe called the election partly to evade further questioning in parliament over his alleged misuse of power in securing approval for a veterinary college campus in Imabari.
List of Japanese prime ministers by longevity
The oldest living Prime Minister is Yasuhiro Nakasone, born 27 May 1918 (age ). The youngest living former Prime Minister is Yoshihiko Noda, born 20 May 1957 (age ).
Kan Cabinet
The Kan Cabinet was the cabinet governing Japan from June 2010 to September 2011 under the leadership of Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who came into power after winning the DPJ presidential election in June 2010. The Kan Cabinet oversaw the response to the aftermath of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and the scaling-down of Japan's nuclear energy dependence following the nuclear disaster at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
The LDP has near continuously been in power since its foundation in 1955—a period called the 1955 System—with the exception of a period between 1993 and 1994, and again from 2009 to 2012. In the 2012 election it regained control of government. It holds 291 seats in the lower house and 121 seats in the upper house, with the Komeito the governing coalition has the supermajority in both houses. Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and many present and former LDP ministers are also known members of Nippon Kaigi, a monarchist and negationist organization.
Kazuyuki Hamada
In September 2011 Kan was replaced as prime minister by Yoshihiko Noda. Hamada became a Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs in Noda's cabinet and remained in the position until the DPJ were defeated by the LDP in the December 2012 general election. The People's New Party also performed poorly in the election, and in the aftermath Hamada became Secretary-General of the party. By March 2013 he and party leader Shozaburo Jimi were the only party members remaining in the Diet and they decided to disband the party. Whilst again sitting as an independent, he caused some controversy in April 2014 during United States President Barack Obama's state visit to Japan by claiming that Michelle Obama's absence from the visit was evidence that the couple were "negotiating a divorce". Hamada joined the Party for Future Generations in November 2014, which changed its name to the Party for Japanese Kokoro in December 2015. From the same time Hamada served as the party's Diet leader.
Politics of Japan
In an undesired move, Noda dissolved the lower house on 16 November 2012 (as he fails to get support outside the Diet on various domestic issues i.e. tax, nuclear energy) and elections were held on 16 December. The results were in the favor of LDP, which won absolute majority in the leadership of former Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. He was appointed as the 96th Prime Minister of Japan on 26 December 2012. With the changing political situation, earlier in November 2014, Prime Minister Abe called for fresh mandate for the Lower House. In an opinion poll the government failed to win the public trust due to bad economic achievements in the two consecutive quarters and on the tax reforms.
List of Prime Ministers of Japan
"Prewar liberals:"
"Unified conservatives:"
"Modern era reformist conservatives, liberals, socialists:"
Japan's non-nuclear weapons policy
Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) President Eisaku Satō was elected Prime Minister in December 1964 (only a month after China revealed its nuclear weapons capability with a test explosion). Although privately supportive of Japanese nuclearization, circumstances led Prime Minister Satō to first articulate the now-standard Three Non-Nuclear Principles, and he is remembered for his contributions to non-proliferation. Most significantly, he was determined to reacquire the island of Okinawa from U.S. occupation. Frustrated by strong public sentiment against the U.S. nuclear presence there, Satō struck a deal with the Johnson Administration, exchanging control of Okinawa for Japan's entry into the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Shinzō Abe
On 14 July 2006, Abe was inaugurated as Japanese Prime Minister. Abe, elected at age 52, was the youngest prime minister since Fumimaro Konoe in 1941.
Finland
The cabinet exercises most executive powers, and originates most of the bills that the parliament then debates and votes on. It is headed by the Prime Minister of Finland, and consists of him or her, of other ministers, and of the Chancellor of Justice. The current prime minister is Juha Sipilä (Centre Party). Each minister heads his or her ministry, or, in some cases, has responsibility for a subset of a ministry's policy. After the prime minister, the most powerful minister is the minister of finance. The incumbent Minister of Finance is Petteri Orpo.
Takushoku University
Takushoku University is a leading university of security studies in Japan.
The current chancellor is a former Minister of Defense, Satoshi Morimoto. Past chancellors include former prime ministers, such as Taro Katsura and Yasuhiro Nakasone.
List of Prime Ministers of Japan
Multiple terms in office, consecutive or otherwise, are listed and counted in the first column ("administration number") and the second column counts individuals. For example, Hatoyama Yukio, is listed as the 60th individual to hold the office of prime minister, whilst his first cabinet is the 93rd since Itō Hirobumi.
Prime Minister of Japan
In practice, the Prime Minister is almost always the leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives, or the leader of the senior partner in the governing coalition.
Military history of Japan
In September 2015, the Liberal Democratic Party under the leadership of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, reinterpreted the Constitution, allowing Japan to use military force in assistance of its allies. The legality of these changes has been questioned by many academics and citizens.
Juha Sipilä
Juha Petri Sipilä (; born in Veteli, 25 April 1961) is the current Prime Minister of Finland. A relative newcomer to politics, he has a successful background in business. He has been the leader of the Centre Party since 9 June 2012. After leading the Centre party to victory in the 2015 general election, Sipilä formed a centre-right coalition and was appointed Prime Minister by the Finnish Parliament on 29 May 2015.
Politics of Japan
On 11 January 2008, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda forced a bill allowing ships to continue a refueling mission in the Indian Ocean in support of US-led operations in Afghanistan. To do so, PM Fukuda used the LDP's overwhelming majority in the Lower House to ignore a previous "no-vote" of the opposition-controlled Upper House. This was the first time in 50 years that the Lower House voted to ignore the opinion of the Upper House. Fukuda resigned suddenly on 1 September 2008, just a few weeks after reshuffling his cabinet. On 1 September 2008, Fukuda's resignation was designed so that the LDP did not suffer a "power vacuum". It thus caused a leadership election within the LDP, and the winner, Tarō Asō was chosen as the new party president and on 24 September 2008, he was appointed as 92nd Prime Minister after the House of Representatives voted in his favor in the extraordinary session of Diet.
Heisei period
In August 2009, for the first time, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) won 308 seats in the lower house election, which ended 50 years of political domination by the LDP. As a result of the election, Tarō Asō resigned as leader of the LDP, and Yukio Hatoyama, president of DPJ became Prime Minister on 16 September 2009. However, DPJ soon became mired in party financing scandals, particularly involving aides close to Ichirō Ozawa. Naoto Kan was chosen by the DPJ as the next Prime Minister, but he soon lost a working majority in the House of Councillors election, and the 2010 Senkaku boat collision incident caused increased tension between Japan and China. The 2009–2010 Toyota vehicle recalls also took place during this time.
Minister of Defense (Japan)
The , or , is the Cabinet of Japan member in charge of the Ministry of Defense, known as the Defense Agency before 2007. The current Japanese Minister of Defense is Takeshi Iwaya.
Government of Japan
The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary state, containing forty-seven administrative divisions, with the Emperor as its head of state. His role is ceremonial and he has no powers related to Government. Instead, it is the Cabinet, comprising the Ministers of State and the Prime Minister, that directs and controls the Government. The Cabinet is the source of power of the Executive branch, and is formed by the Prime Minister, who is the head of government. He or she is designated by the National Diet and appointed to office by the Emperor.
Shinji Tarutoko
In June 2010, he declared his intention to run against Naoto Kan for the leadership of the Democratic Party of Japan; had he won, he would have become the next Prime Minister of Japan. However, he was defeated on a 291-129 vote. He was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications by Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda on 1 October 2012.
Yūko Obuchi
On September 24, 2008, Obuchi and Shinjirō Koizumi was appointed Minister of State for Social Affairs and Gender Equality in the cabinet of Prime Minister Tarō Asō. This made her Japan's youngest cabinet member in the post-war era. Her party was out of office from September, 2009 until December 2012. In December 2012, she was appointed Vice Minister of Finance by the new Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, and on 3 September 2014, she was made Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry in Abe's cabinet. As such, she became the minister responsible for the nuclear industry in Japan, with partial responsibility for the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster clean-up.
Masaharu Kono
Masaharu Kono ( b. 1948) is the current Government Representative of Japan and the past Ambassador of Japan to Italy, presenting his credentials to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on 29 May 2009 when he still was Ambassador of Japan to Russia. In March 2011, was relieved of his position as ambassador to Russia.
Takeo Fukuda
Fukuda was married and had five children: three sons and two daughters. His eldest son, Yasuo Fukuda, after the sudden resignation of Shinzō Abe, became Prime Minister in September 2007, and remained in that office for one year, making him the first son of a Japanese prime minister to become a prime minister himself. In addition, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi began his political career as a secretary to Fukuda, and the two were very close in their political and personal lives from the 1970s onward (Fukuda was the best man at Koizumi's wedding).
Government of Japan
The Cabinet of Japan (内閣) consists of the Ministers of State and the Prime Minister. The members of the Cabinet are appointed by the Prime Minister, and under the Cabinet Law, the number of members of the Cabinet appointed, excluding the Prime Minister, must be fourteen or less, but may only be increased to nineteen should a special need arise. of the Constitution states that all members of the Cabinet must be civilians and the majority of them must be chosen from among the members of either house of the National Diet. The precise wording leaves an opportunity for the Prime Minister to appoint some non-elected Diet officials. The Cabinet is required to resign "en masse" while still continuing its functions, till the appointment of a new Prime Minister, when the following situation arises:
Deputy Prime Minister of Japan
The current Deputy Prime Minister is Tarō Asō, who took the post on 26 December 2012.
2008 Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) leadership election
A leadership election was held in the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan on 22 September 2008 after the incumbent party leader and Prime Minister of Japan Yasuo Fukuda announced that he would resign on 1 September 2008, only 11 months after taking office on 25 September 2007 following a leadership election on 23 September 2007. Taro Aso, who had lost to Fukuda in the 2007 leadership election, was widely seen as the frontrunner to replace him, and announced on 2 September 2008 he was ready to take over as party leader. Aso won the leadership election against four opponents, receiving 67% of the vote.
Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution
In May 2007, the then Prime Minister of Japan Shinzō Abe marked the 60th anniversary of the Japanese Constitution by calling for a "bold review" of the document to allow the country to take a larger role in global security and foster a revival of national pride. Aside from Abe's Liberal Democratic Party, as of 2012, the Japan Restoration Party, Democratic Party of Japan, People's New Party, and Your Party support a constitutional amendment to reduce or abolish restrictions imposed by Article 9.
Yōhei Kōno
He was Deputy Prime Minister from 1994 to 1995. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs under Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama and Murayama's successor Yoshirō Mori. He is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). He was once President of the LDP from 1993 to 1995, and to date is the only LDP leader except for Sadakazu Tanigaki to have never served as Prime Minister of Japan. As he is one of the pro-Chinese members of the LDP, he came under pressure domestically in the spring of 2005 when anti-Japanese movements in China became intense.
2017 Japanese general election
The took place on 22 October 2017. Voting took place in all Representatives constituencies of Japan – 289 single-member districts and eleven proportional blocks – in order to appoint all 465 members (down from 475) of the House of Representatives, the lower house of the then 707-member bicameral National Diet of Japan. Incumbent Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's governing coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito retained their seats in light of what was perceived as weak opposition, winning his fourth term in office and holding on to the two-thirds supermajority in order to revise the war-renouncing Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution.
Shinzō Abe
On 18 October 2015 Abe presided over the triennial fleet review of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force in his role as Commander-in-Chief of the Self-Defense Forces. In his speech to personnel on board the destroyer "Kurama" he announced that "by highly hoisting the flag of 'proactive pacifism,' I'm determined to contribute more than ever to world peace and prosperity". Later that day he went aboard the , becoming the first Japanese prime minister to set foot on an American warship.
Quantitative easing
The Bank hoped to bring Japan from deflation to inflation, aiming for 2% inflation. The amount of purchases was so large that it was expected to double the money supply. This policy has been named Abenomics, as a portmanteau of economic policies and Shinzō Abe, the current Prime Minister of Japan.
Shōgun
Today, the head of the Japanese government is the Prime Minister; the usage of the term ""shōgun"" has nevertheless continued in colloquialisms. A retired Prime Minister who still wields considerable power and influence behind the scenes is called a , a sort of modern incarnation of the cloistered rule. Examples of "shadow "shōguns" are former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka and the politician Ichirō Ozawa.
Shinzō Abe
He initially refrained from visiting the shrine as a sitting Prime Minister. He did not visit at all during his first term from September 2006 to September 2007, unlike his predecessor Koizumi, who had visited yearly while in office. Abe's not visiting the shrine prompted a Japanese nationalist named Yoshihiro Tanjo to cut off his own little finger in protest and mail it to the LDP. While campaigning for the presidency of the LDP in 2012, Abe said that he regretted not visiting the shrine while Prime Minister. He again refrained from visiting the shrine during the first year of his second stint as Prime Minister in consideration for improving relations with China and Korea, whose leaders refused to meet with Abe during this time. He said on 9 December 2013 that "it is natural that we should express our feelings of respect to the war dead who sacrificed their lives for the nation ... but it is my thinking that we should avoid making [Yasukuni visits] political and diplomatic issues". In lieu of visiting, Abe sent ritual offerings to the shrine for festivals in April and October 2013, as well as the anniversary of the end of World War II in August 2013.
Haruko Hatoyama
Her great-grandson Yukio Hatoyama represents the 9th district of Hokkaidō in the House of Representatives and is a former leader of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). Yukio was Prime Minister of Japan between September 16, 2009 and June 8, 2010.
Member of parliament
In Japan, both houses of today's national parliament, the National Diet "(Kokkai)", are directly elected, and although the two chambers differ in legislative and political authority, term length and age restriction of eligibility, the members of both houses are generally equal in personal status (financial compensation, immunity, etc.). There are currently 717 members of the National Diet ("Kokkai giin", 国会議員): 475 Members of the House of Representatives ("Shūgiin giin", 衆議院議員) and 242 Members of the House of Councillors ("Sangiin giin", 参議院議員). The former are elected in general/by-/repeat elections of members of the House of Representatives "(Shūgiin giin sō-/hoketsu-/sai-senkyo)", the latter in regular/by-/repeat elections of members of the House of Councillors "(Sangiin giin tsūjō-/hoketsu-/sai-senkyo)". Under the postwar constitution, the prime minister is elected by the National Diet and must be a member of the National Diet, as must the majority of other ministers; by practice, all prime ministers since 1947 have been members of the House of Representatives so far.
Democratic Party of Japan
Ozawa resigned as party leader in May 2009 after a fundraising scandal and Yukio Hatoyama succeeded Ozawa before the August 2009 general election, at which the party swept the LDP from power in a massive landslide, winning 308 seats (out of a total of 480 seats), reducing the LDP from 300 to 119 seats - the worst defeat for a sitting government in modern Japanese history. This was in marked contrast to the closely contested 1993 general election, the only other time the LDP has lost an election. The DPJ's strong majority in the House of Representatives assured that Hatoyama would be the next prime minister. Hatoyama was nominated on September 16 and formally appointed later that day by Emperor Akihito.
Third Abe Cabinet
The Third Abe Cabinet governed Japan under the leadership of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe from December 2014 to November 2017. The government is a coalition between the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito (which had changed its name from "New Komeito" in the 2012–2014 term) and controls both the upper and lower houses of the National Diet.
Yoshirō Mori
Mori remained an important player in Russo-Japanese relations following his resignation as prime minister due to his close personal relationship with Vladimir Putin. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda of the Democratic Party of Japan considered tapping Mori in 2012 to resolve the dispute between the two countries over the Kuril Islands, despite the fact that Noda and Mori were from opposing parties in the Diet. In 2013, Mori met with Putin and Sergey Naryshkin in preparations for a summit between Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe. Mori had at one time suggested that Japan could give Russia three of the four disputed islands in exchange for a peace treaty, which went against the Japanese government's official view that Moscow should acknowledge Japan's ownership of all four.
Mori has a personal connection to Russia, as his father Shigeki Mori developed a relationship with the Siberian town of Shelekhov during his time as mayor of the city of Neagari, and developed a bilateral dialogue to improve the gravesites of Soviet soldiers in Japan and Japanese soldiers in Siberia; he was so close to Russia that Japanese authorities monitored him closely as a potential communist sympathizer. The elder Mori visited Shelekhov more than 15 times during his 35 years in office, and was buried there following his death.
People's Life First
On 3 August 2012, the People's Life First in concert with six other minor opposition parties (The Kizuna Party, Japanese Communist Party, Social Democratic Party, Your Party, New Party Nippon (which has no lower-house lawmaker) and the New Renaissance Party) agreed to submit a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda in an effort to block the passage of the bill raising Japan's consumption tax from 5% to 10%. In the Japanese diet the support of 51 lawmakers is required to submit a co-confidence motion to the lower house. The motion was submitted to the House of Representatives on 7 August 2012, along with a censure motion against Noda in the House of Councillors. The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party was also considering its own no-confidence motion and censure motions if Noda did not agree to call a general election. The no-confidence motion was voted down 246 to 86, with the DPJ voting against and the LDP and its partner New Komeito deciding to be absent from the vote after Noda agreed to hold elections "soon".
1980s in Japan
There were a number of prime ministers who served during the 1980s. Masayoshi Ōhira had to finish his second term in June 1980 and call early elections when the LDP's Fukuda, Nakasone and Miki factions abstained or voted with the opposition in a vote of no-confidence. He was only the second Christian to hold this office, the first having been Tetsu Katayama (1947–1948). Zenkō Suzuki was appointed LDP president and Prime Minister following the sudden death of Ōhira, who died of a heart attack during the 1980 general election campaign. The sympathy vote generated by Ohira's death resulted in a landslide for the ruling LDP, handing Suzuki the largest parliamentary majority any Prime Minister had enjoyed for many years, and silencing inner-party opposition. Suzuki chose not to run for reelection to the presidency of the LDP in 1982, and was succeeded by Yasuhiro Nakasone in November 1982.
2010 Japanese House of Councillors election
On 11 June 2008, a non-binding censure motion was passed by parliament's opposition-controlled House of Councillors against then Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. Filed by the DPJ and two other parties, it was the first censure motion against a prime minister under Japan's post-war constitution. Ahead of the G8 summit, it attacked his handling of domestic issues including an unpopular medical plan and called for a snap election or his resignation. On 12 June a motion of confidence was passed by the lower house's ruling coalition to counter the censure. Fukuda abruptly announced he was retiring as leader. Taro Aso won the subsequent election, which was held on 22 September 2008.
2015 Japanese military legislation
In 2015, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party promoted legislation, passed on September 19, 2015, despite some public opposition, to allow the country's military to participate in foreign conflicts, overturning its previous policy of fighting only in self-defense. Since the Japanese constitution only allows the Japanese military to act in self-defense, the legislation reinterpreted the relevant passages to allow the military to operate overseas for "collective self-defense" for allies. The legislation came into effect on March 29, 2016.
Prime Minister of Japan
The Prime Minister is designated by both houses of the Diet, before the conduct of any other business. For that purpose, each conducts a ballot under the run-off system. If the two houses choose different individuals, then a joint committee of both houses is appointed to agree on a common candidate. Ultimately, however, if the two houses do not agree within ten days, the decision of the House of Representatives is deemed to be that of the Diet. Therefore, the House of Representatives can theoretically ensure the appointment of any Prime Minister it wants. The candidate is then presented with his or her commission, and formally appointed to office by the Emperor.
Katsura Tarō
Katsura Tarō served as the 11th, 13th and 15th Prime Minister of Japan. He remains the longest-serving Prime Minister of Japan to date.
Yasuhiro Nakasone
At the age of , Nakasone is currently the oldest living former Japanese prime minister as well as the oldest living former state leader in the world, following the death of Babiker Awadalla on 17 January 2019. Nakasone is the second oldest Prime Minister of Japan by age after Naruhiko Higashikuni who lived to .
Emperor of Japan
Currently, the Emperor of Japan is the only head of state in the world with the English title of "Emperor". The Imperial House of Japan is the oldest continuing monarchical house in the world. The historical origins of the Emperors lie in the late Kofun period of the 3rd–7th centuries AD, but according to the traditional account of the "Kojiki" (finished 712) and "Nihon Shoki" (finished 720), Japan was founded in 660 BC by Emperor Jimmu, who was said to be a direct descendant of the sun-goddess Amaterasu. The current Emperor is Akihito. He acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne upon the death of his father, Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito), in 1989. The Japanese government announced in December 2017 that Akihito will abdicate on 30 April 2019.
Hikari Ota's If I Were Prime Minister... Secretary Tanaka
Hikari Ōta, who is a comedian, usually takes the position of Prime Minister, and puts forth to the assembled guests a manifesto, generally of a very radical, sometimes even ridiculous nature. In the video introduction that follows, Ōta's manifesto is explained, and a brief (and humorous) proof is given for how this particular manifesto will bring peace to Japan, and/or the world. The guests are then divided into those who propose and oppose the manifesto, and debating starts with an introduction by the "Prime Minister". The discussions, though generally civil, can often produce high tensions between debaters, even those arguing on the same side, and Speaker Fumi Mori (who is actually an announcer for Nippon TV), sitting above the assembly, often exercises her power to halt discussion and gives individuals a chance to speak freely.
Anti-nuclear power movement in Japan
The current Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, who was elected in 2012, has put nuclear energy back on the political agenda, with plans to restart as many reactors as possible. In July 2015, the government submitted its ideas for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to the United Nations, and the proposal included a target for nuclear power to meet at least 20% of Japan's electricity consumption by 2030. Renewable energy sources, such as hydropower but also solar power, would contribute 22% or more. On 11 August 2015, the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant broke a four-year lull when it restarted one of its reactors. The restart is the first since Japan's nuclear power industry collapsed, following the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi disaster.
India–Japan relations
In November 2016, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a three-day visit to Japan signed a deal with his counterpart Shinzo Abe on nuclear energy. The deal took six years to negotiate, delayed in part by the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. This is the first time that Japan signed such deal with a non-signatory of Non-Proliferation Treaty. The deal gives Japan the right to supply nuclear reactors, fuel and technology, to India. This deal aimed to help India build the six nuclear reactors planned in Delhi, to be completed by 2032.
Koenkai
Takeshita Noboru (竹下 登, 26 February 1924 - 19 June 2000) was an LDP career politician and the 74th Prime Minister of Japan between 1987 to 1989. Throughout his life in politics, Takeshita was known for the large behind-the-scenes influence he held over Japanese politics, leading to him being informally bestowed the mantle of the ‘last shadow shogun'. Takeshita's political base was founded in Shimane Prefecture, where he held a seat in the House of Representatives between 1958 and 2000. In total, Takeshita was consecutively re-elected to this seat fourteen times.
Democratic Party of Japan
On 2 June 2010, Hatoyama announced his resignation before a party meeting and officially resigned two days later. He cited breaking a campaign promise to close an American military base on the island of Okinawa as the main reason for the move. On 28 May 2010, soon after and because of increased tensions after the possible sinking of a Korean ship by North Korea, Hatoyama had made a deal with U.S. President Barack Obama to retain the base for security reasons, but the deal was unpopular in Japan. He also mentioned money scandals involving a top party leader, Ozawa, who resigned as well, in his decision to step down. Hatoyama had been pressured to leave by members of his party after doing poorly in polls in anticipation of the July upper house election. Naoto Kan succeeded Hatoyama as the next President of DPJ and Prime Minister of Japan.
Trade policy of Japan
In a diet speech of January 24, 2011, former prime minister Kan proclaimed that Japan would and should participate to the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership. This proclamation raised an unusual controversy among Japanese, not only those policy people and media people, but among wide range of people in industry, agriculture, medicine and even writers. The controversy continued until prime minister Noda decided that the Government would start to negotiate with TPP countries on November 11, 2011. Mass media stopped covering the question on a daily basis but the opposition movements continued. Recently Mr. Noda revealed that he will not discuss TPP question at the coming talk with U.S. President Obama on 
April 30.
Article 96 of the Japanese Constitution
Shinzo Abe, the current Prime Minister of Japan, has been a vocal proponent of revising Article 96, stating that "It's unfair that just more than one-third of lawmakers could block revisions even if 50 percent or more of the public want to amend the Constitution". Given that his Liberal Democratic Party controls both Houses of the National Diet (for the first time in nearly a decade), political pundits say that he has a fair chance to succeed. However, the Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner, New Komeito, may be unwilling to support such a change, and in fact, the Liberal Democratic Party appeared to drop the issue from its platform in the run up to the House of Councillors election in 2013. Moreover, the Japanese population appears to be roughly divided regarding the revision of Article 96, with 42% in favor and 46% against according to a recent Mainichi Shimbun poll. A separate NHK survey showed that nearly 50% of Japanese had no opinion on the subject.
New Party Nippon
On August 3, 2012 the party (which has no member in the lower house) in concert with six other minor opposition parties (People's Life First, Kizuna Party, Social Democratic Party, Your Party, Japanese Communist Party and the New Renaissance Party) agreed to submit a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda in an effort to block the passage of the bill raising Japan's consumption tax from 5% to 10%. In the Japanese diet the support of 51 lawmakers is required to submit a co-confidence motion to the lower house. The motion was submitted to the lower house on August 7, along with a censure motion against Noda. The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party was also considering its own no-confidence motion and censure motions if Noda did not agree to call a general election. The no-confidence motion was voted down 246 to 86, with the DPJ voting against and the LDP and its partner New Komeito deciding to be absent from the vote after Noda agreed to hold elections "soon".
Politics of Japan
Prime Minister Obuchi suffered a stroke in April 2000 and was replaced by Yoshirō Mori. After the Liberal Party left the coalition in April 2000, Prime Minister Mori welcomed a Liberal Party splinter group, the New Conservative Party, into the ruling coalition. The three-party coalition made up of the LDP, New Komeito, and the New Conservative Party maintained its majority in the Diet following the June 2000 Lower House elections.
Second Abe Cabinet
The Second Abe Cabinet governed Japan under the leadership of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe from December 2012 to December 2014. Following the return to power of the LDP in the 2012 general election, Abe, as party president, was elected Prime Minister by the National Diet on December 26, 2012, and presented his cabinet for swearing in by the Emperor later that day. Abe formed a coalition with the New Komeito Party, which has partnered with the LDP since the late 1990s, appointing former leader Akihiro Ota as Minister of Land. Together the two parties controlled a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives, allowing the new government in most matters to override the veto of the upper house which was controlled by the opposition parties until July 2013.
Politics of Japan
The ruling LDP started losing hold since 2006. No prime minister except Koizumi had good public support. On 26 September 2006, new LDP President Shinzō Abe was elected by a special session of the Diet to succeed Junichiro Koizumi as Prime Minister. He was the Japan's youngest post-World War II prime minister and the first born after the war. On 12 September 2007, Abe surprised Japan by announcing his resignation from office. He was replaced by Yasuo Fukuda, a veteran of LDP.
Shinzō Abe
On a tour of the Middle East in January 2015, Abe announced that Japan would provide 200 million dollars in non-military assistance to countries fighting against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant as part of a 2.5 billion dollar aid package. Shortly after this, ISIL released a video in which a masked figure (identified as Mohammed Emwazi or "Jihadi John") threatened to kill two Japanese hostages, Kenji Goto and Haruna Yukawa, in retaliation for the move unless Abe's government paid 200 million dollars of ransom money. Abe cut short his trip to deal with the crisis, declared that such acts of terrorism were "unforgivable" and promised to save the hostages, while refusing to pay the ransom. The Abe cabinet worked with the Jordanian government to attempt to secure the release of both hostages, after further videos were released by ISIL linking their fate to that of pilot Muath Al-Kasasbeh, with deputy foreign minister Yasuhide Nakayama conducting negotiations in Amman. Both hostages were killed, ISIL releasing news of Yukawa's death on 24 January and Goto's on 31 January. Abe condemned the killings as a "heinous act", declared that Japan would "not give in to terrorism" and pledged to work with the international community to bring the killers to justice. There was some criticism of Abe for his move to pledge aid against ISIL while they were holding Japanese citizens hostage, but polls showed support for his administration increasing in the aftermath of the crisis. He later used the example of the hostage crisis to argue the case for the collective self-defense legislation that his government introduced in the summer of 2015 (see below).
In April 2015, he addressed a joint sitting of the U.S. Congress, the first Japanese prime minister to do so. In his speech he referred to the Japan-US Alliance as the "Alliance of Hope", promised that Japan would play a more active security and defence role in the alliance and argued that the TPP would bring both economic and security benefits to the Asia-Pacific region. The address served as part of a state visit to the United States, the eighth of the Obama Presidency, which the president referred to as a "celebration of the ties of friendship" between America and Japan. During the visit, Abe attended a state dinner at the White House.
Prime Minister of Japan
For long distance air travel, Japan maintains two Boeing 747-400 aircraft mostly for the Prime Minister of Japan, the Emperor, Empress and other members of the Imperial Family, operated by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force.
Neo-nationalism
The 63rd and current Prime Minister Shinzō Abe (assumed office in 2012), a member of the right-wing organisation Nippon Kaigi, has promoted ideas of new nationalism, as does the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, which he leads.
Demographics of Japan
In 2015 the Japanese government under prime minister Shinzō Abe announced that its policy of restricting immigration would not change despite the current declining population. In the long term, its plan is to improve technology to address the labour shortage, while increasing Japanese fertility rates from the current level of 1.4 to 1.8, eventually stabilizing the population at approximately 100 million.
Politics of Osaka City
Osaka City's current mayor is Tōru Hashimoto who had resigned as Osaka governor in 2011 to run in the mayoral election against incumbent Kunio Hiramatsu. Hashimoto won a clear victory even though Hiramatsu was supported by the established parties including the Japanese Communist Party who had for the first time since 1963 not nominated their own mayoral candidate to prevent Hashimoto's alleged "fascist, dictatorial" policies. As mayor, Hashimoto supports the implementation of the Osaka Metropolis plan, opposes unions particularly the unions of public sector workers (local public servants union, teachers union, transportation workers union), and has taken an anti-nuclear stance in the energy policy debate after the earthquake in 2011. While Hashimoto's reformism is popular among his supporters not only in the city or the prefecture but nationwide (where he and his party threaten to contest elections if the national Diet obstructs his reforms), opponents see him as a populist and criticize his leadership style as authoritarian, also referred to as "Hashism" (ハシズム).
Elections in Japan
Since 1947, the Prime Minister of Japan has been chosen in the "designation election of the prime minister" ("Naikaku sōridaijin shimei senkyo", 内閣総理大臣指名選挙) in the National Diet. It is held after a cabinet has submitted its resignation – the outgoing cabinet remains as caretaker cabinet until the Imperial inauguration ceremony of a new prime minister –; a cabinet must resign en masse under the constitution (Articles 69 and 70) 1. always on convocation of the first Diet after a general election of the House of Representatives, 2. if the post of prime minister has fallen vacant – that includes cases when the prime minister is permanently incapacitated, e.g. by illness, kidnapping or defection –, or 3. if a no-confidence vote in the House of Representatives is not answered by the dissolution of the chamber. Though both Houses of the Diet vote in two-round elections to select a prime minister, the House of Representatives has the decisive vote: If the two Houses vote for different candidates (as they did in 1948, 1989, 1998, 2007 and 2008), a procedure in the joint committee of both houses ("ryōin kyōkaigi") may reach a consensus; but eventually the candidate of the House of Representatives becomes that of the whole Diet and thereby prime minister-designate. The designated prime minister must still be ceremonially appointed by the Emperor in the Imperial Investiture ("shinninshiki") to enter office; but unlike some heads of state, the Emperor has no reserve power to appoint anyone other than the person elected by the Diet.
Junichiro Koizumi
On April 24, 2001, Koizumi was elected president of the LDP. He was initially considered an outside candidate against Hashimoto, who was running for his second term as Prime Minister. However, in the first poll of prefectural party organizations, Koizumi won 87 to 11 percent; in the second vote of Diet members, Koizumi won 51 to 40 percent. He defeated Hashimoto by a final tally of 298 to 155 votes. He was made Prime Minister of Japan on April 26, and his coalition secured 78 of 121 seats in the Upper House elections in July.
American Chamber of Commerce Japan
The ACCJ committees combined hold over 500 programs annually, and these events are exclusively attended by ACCJ members and their accompanied guests. The backbone of the annual agenda is hundreds of engagements with leading experts and shapers of policy and business trends in Japan. Speakers are drawn from the ranks of global business leaders, top U.S. and Japanese government officials, industry experts, scholars and pop culture icons. Former speakers Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe; JP Morgan Japan Director of Research, Jesper Koll; Rakuten Inc CEO, Hiroshi Mikitani; General Electric CEO, Jeffrey R. Immelt; U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO, Tom J. Donohue; former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger; U.S. Department of Energy Secretary, Steven Chu; Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood; Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano; U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Caroline Kennedy, and many others have chosen the ACCJ as their forum for addressing Japan’s international business community.
Politics of Japan
In a strong move, on 8 August 2005, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi called for a snap election to the lower house, as threatened, after LDP stalwarts and opposition DPJ parliamentarians defeated his proposal for a large-scale reform and privatization of Japan Post, which besides being Japan's state-owned postal monopoly is arguably the world's largest financial institution, with nearly 331 trillion yen of assets. The election was scheduled for 11 September 2005, with the LDP achieving a landslide victory under Junichiro Koizumi's leadership.
New Renaissance Party
On August 3, 2012 the party in concert with six other minor opposition parties (People's Life First, Kizuna Party, Social Democratic Party, Your Party, New Party Nippon (which has no lower-house lawmaker) and the Japanese Communist Party) agreed to submit a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda in an effort to block the passage of the bill raising Japan's consumption tax from 5% to 10%. In the Japanese diet the support of 51 lawmakers is required to submit a co-confidence motion to the lower house. The motion was submitted to the lower house on August 7, along with a censure motion against Noda. The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party was also considering its own no-confidence motion and censure motions if Noda did not agree to call a general election. The no-confidence motion was voted down 246 to 86, with the DPJ voting against and the LDP and its partner New Komeito deciding to be absent from the vote after Noda agreed to hold elections "soon".
Shinzō Abe
Abe later revealed that the illness that contributed to ending his first term as Prime Minister was ulcerative colitis, but that he has since recovered due to access to a drug, Asacol, that was previously unavailable in Japan. When he returned to office he used his own case to argue for lessening the time it takes to approve potentially innovative drugs. After resigning as Prime Minister, Abe remained in the National Diet and was re-elected in his Yamaguchi 4th district at the 2009 election when the LDP lost power to the Democratic Party of Japan.
On 26 September 2012, Abe was re-elected as president of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party defeating former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba in a runoff vote by 108 votes to 89. Abe returned to the LDP leadership at a time of political turmoil, the governing DPJ had lost its majority in the lower house due to party splits over nuclear policies and the cabinet's move to raise the consumption tax from 5 to 10 percent. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda was forced to rely on the LDP to pass the Consumption Tax bill and in return was pressured by Abe and the opposition parties to hold a snap general election. Noda agreed to this on the conditions that the LDP passed a bond-financing bill, and would support a commission to reform the social security system and address electoral malapportionment in the next diet session.
2018 Japan floods
Prime Minister Shinzō Abe released a statement ordering ministers to "make an all-out effort" to rescue victims. Abe called for an emergency disaster meeting on 8 July, the first such meeting by the government since the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, reported that the government had set up a task force which was coupled with 2 billion yen ($18 million) to hasten delivery of supplies and other support items for evacuation centers and residents in the region.
Prime Minister of Japan
After relinquishing office, the Prime Minister is normally accorded the second or senior third rank in the court order of precedence, and is usually raised to the senior second rank posthumously. Certain distinguished Prime Ministers have been posthumously raised to the first rank; the last such award was to Sato Eisaku in 1975. Since the 1920s, following their tenure in office, Prime Ministers have typically been conferred with the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers (until 2003 a special higher class of the Order of the Rising Sun), depending on tenure and eminence. However, honours may be withheld due to misconduct or refusal on the part of the Prime Minister (for example, Kiichi Miyazawa).
Prime Minister of Japan
The is the head of government and chief executive of Japan. The Prime Minister is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the National Diet and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office. He is the chairman of the Cabinet and appoints and dismisses the other Ministers of State. The literal translation of the Japanese name for the office is "Minister for the Comprehensive Administration of ("or" the Presidency over) the Cabinet".
Politics of Japan
The chief of the executive branch, the Prime Minister, is appointed by the Emperor as directed by the Diet. He is a member of either house of the Diet and must be a civilian. The Cabinet members are nominated by the Prime Minister, and are also required to be civilian. With the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in power, it has been convention that the President of the party serves as the Prime Minister.
Seiken Sugiura
Seiken Sugiura (杉浦 正健 "Sugiura Seiken", born July 26, 1934) is a Japanese politician and lawyer. He was named Minister of Justice on October 31, 2005 and served in the cabinet of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. Being a Buddhist, he imposed a moratorium on executions during his time as Minister of Justice.
Lost Decade (Japan)
More than 25 years after the initial market crash, Japan is still feeling the effects of Lost Decade. However, several Japanese policymakers have attempted reforms to address the malaise in the Japanese economy. After Shinzo Abe was elected as Japanese prime minister in December 2012, Abe introduced a reform program known as Abenomics which sought to address many of the issues raised by Japan's Lost Decade. His "three arrows" of reform intend to address Japan's chronically low inflation, decreasing worker productivity relative to other developed nations, and demographic issues raised by an aging population. Investor response to the announced reform was strong, and the Nikkei 225 rallied to 20,000 in May 2015 from a low of around 9,000 in 2008. The Bank of Japan has set a 2% target for consumer-price inflation, although success has been hampered by a sales tax increase enacted to balance the government budget.
2009 Japanese general election
The last general election took place in 2005 in which the LDP, led by popular prime minister Junichiro Koizumi, received 38.2% of the proportional block votes and 47.8% of the district votes cast (the next largest party, the DPJ, received 31% in the proportional and 36.4% in the district vote). Due to the characteristics of the Japanese election system, the LDP ended up with 296 seats in the Lower House (61.6%), which enabled Koizumi to complete the privatization of Japan Post. Since then Japan has had three further prime ministers (Shinzō Abe, Yasuo Fukuda and Tarō Asō) who have come to power without there being a general election.
Yasuo Fukuda
In the election, on 23 September, he defeated Aso, receiving 330 votes against Aso's 197. Fukuda was formally elected as Japan's 91st prime minister on 25 September. He received 338 votes, almost 100 more than necessary for a majority, in the House of Representatives; although the House of Councillors (the upper house), led by the opposition Democratic Party, elected Ichirō Ozawa over Fukuda by a margin of 133 to 106. This deadlock was then resolved in favor of the lower house's choice, according to Article 67 of the Constitution.
Head of state
The was drawn up under the Allied occupation that followed World War II and was intended to replace the previous militaristic and quasi-absolute monarchy system with a form of liberal democracy parliamentary system. The constitution explicitly vests all executive power in the Cabinet, who is chaired by the prime minister (articles 65 and 66) and responsible to the Diet (articles 67 and 69). The emperor is defined in the constitution as "the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people" (article 1), and is generally recognized throughout the world as the Japanese head of state. Although the emperor formally appoints the prime minister to office, article 6 of the constitution requires him to appoint the candidate "as designated by the Diet", without any right to decline appointment. He is a ceremonial figurehead with no independent discretionary powers related to the governance of Japan.
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
After a victory in the Japan general election, 2005, the LDP held an absolute majority in the Japanese House of Representatives and formed a coalition government with the New Komeito Party. Abe succeeded then-Prime Minister Junichirō Koizumi as the president of the party on 20 September 2006. The party suffered a major defeat in the election of 2007, however, and lost its majority in the upper house for the first time in its history.
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
With the exception of Yohei Kono and Sadakazu Tanigaki, every has also served as Prime Minister of Japan.
Anti-Japanese sentiment
In recent years, the Yasukuni Shrine has become a sticking point in the relations of Japan and its neighbours. The enshrinement of war criminals has greatly angered the people of various countries invaded by Imperial Japan. In addition, the shrine published a pamphlet stating that "[war] was necessary in order for us to protect the independence of Japan and to prosper together with our Asian neighbors" and that the war criminals were "cruelly and unjustly tried as war criminals by a sham-like tribunal of the Allied forces". While it is true that the fairness of these trials is disputed among jurists and historians in the West as well as in Japan, the former Prime Minister of Japan, Junichiro Koizumi, has visited the shrine five times; every visit caused immense uproar in China and South Korea. His successor, Shinzo Abe, was also a regular visitor of Yasukuni. Some Japanese politicians have responded by saying that the shrine, as well as visits to it, is protected by the constitutional right of freedom of religion. Yasuo Fukuda, chosen Prime Minister in September 2007, promised "not to visit" Yasukuni.
Cabinet of Japan
In practice, much of the Cabinet's authority is exercised by the Prime Minister. Under the Constitution, the Prime Minister exercises "control and supervision" over the executive branch, and no law or Cabinet order can take effect without the Prime Minister's countersignature (and the Emperor's promulgation). While Cabinet Ministers in most other parliamentary democracies theoretically have some freedom of action (within the limits of cabinet collective responsibility), the Japanese Cabinet is effectively an extension of the Prime Minister's authority.
The members of the current cabinet of Japan headed by the Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Shinzō Abe as of 2 October 2018 are as follows:
Haruhiko Kuroda
Kuroda has been an advocate of looser monetary policy in Japan. His February 2013 nomination by the incoming government of the Prime Minister Shinzō Abe had been expected. Also nominated at the same time were Kikuo Iwata – "a harsh critic of past BOJ policies" – and Hiroshi Nakaso, a senior BOJ official in charge of international affairs, as Kuroda's two deputies. The former governor, Masaaki Shirakawa, left in March 2013.
Fourth Abe Cabinet
The Fourth Abe Cabinet was formed in November 2017 by Prime Minister Shinzō Abe and is the current government of Japan. The government is a coalition between the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito (which had changed its name from "New Komeito" in the 2012–2014 term) and controls both the upper and lower houses of the National Diet.
R = Member of the House of Representatives
C = Member of the House of Councillors
Yamada Corporation
Yamada currently employs Democratic Party of Japan' s Shozo Azuma (東 祥三), an ex-member for the House of Representatives of Japan. It also employs several other retired officials and their family member from the Japan Ministry of Defense (former Japan Defense Agency).
Yoshihiko Yonezu (米津 佳彦), President & C.E.O. of the company, is an executive board member of the aforementioned Congressional National Security Research Group. Other members of the group include the current PM Yasuo Fukuda; current Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba; a former leader of the Democratic Party of Japan Seiji Maehara; Ex-Defense Ministers Fumio Kyuma, Tokuichiro Tamazawa, Fukushiro Nukaga, Tsutomu Kawara and Gen Nakatani; Ex-Agriculture Ministers Tsutomu Takebe and Norihiko Akagi.
Masahide Ōta
In 1998, Keizō Obuchi replaced Ryutaro Hashimoto as the Prime Minister of Japan. Obuchi supported the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) candidate Keiichi Inamine for the governor's post in opposition to Ōta. By then the central and American government considered Ōta as "one of the biggest thornes" on both sides in the Japan–America relationship. Inamine, the eldest son of oil company Ryukyu Sekiyo's owner Ichiro Inamine, led a successful campaign not disregarding Ōta's work directly but calling it unrealistic. The central government cut down subsidies to Okinawa in 1998 leading to 9.2 percent of unemployment in August 1998. Inamine promised to revive the employment condition with his contacts in the central government and on the day of election LDP's campaign banners had slogan "9.2 percent" whereas Ōta campaigned using "Okinawans, Don't Sell Your Souls." Ōta lost with 46.9 percent votes whereas 52.1 percent went to Inamine.
Naoto Kan
On 2 June 2010, Yukio Hatoyama announced his intention to resign as the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) and as prime minister, also saying that he had urged his backer in the party, Ichirō Ozawa, to resign as Secretary General. The Cabinet resigned "en masse" on 4 June. Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada and Land and Transport Minister Seiji Maehara, though once considered to be possible successors to Hatoyama, announced their support for Naoto Kan. Kan, at his age of 63, won the leadership of the DPJ with 291 votes to 129, defeating a relatively unknown Ozawa-backed legislator Shinji Tarutoko, 50, who was leading the environmental policy committee in the lower house of the Diet.
List of Prime Ministers of Japan
(*) The table only includes PMs who have cumulatively served 2 years (730 days) or more. A fully detailed list is available at List of Japanese prime ministers by longevity.As of 2022, eleven former Prime Ministers of Japan are alive. The most recent death of a former Prime Minister of Japan is that of Tsutomu Hata (1994) on August 28, 2017. Shinzō Abe, who served as Prime Minister from 2006 to 2007, is currently serving (since 2012) and thus is not included on this list.
Shinzō Abe
On 26 December 2012, Abe was formally elected as Prime Minister by the Diet, with the support of 328 out of 480 members of the House of Representatives, he and his second cabinet, which he called a "crisis-busting cabinet", were sworn in later that day. The new government included LDP heavyweights such as former Prime Minister Tarō Asō as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Yoshihide Suga as Chief Cabinet Secretary and Akira Amari as Economy Minister. Following his victory, Abe said, "With the strength of my entire cabinet, I will implement bold monetary policy, flexible fiscal policy and a growth strategy that encourages private investment, and with these three policy pillars, achieve results."
Yasuo Fukuda
Fukuda was considered a contender for the leadership of the LDP in 2006, but, on 21 July, he decided that he would not seek the nomination. Instead, Shinzō Abe succeeded Junichirō Koizumi as leader of the LDP and Prime Minister of Japan. One of his most noted policy goals is to end prime ministerial visits to Yasukuni Shrine. In June 2006, Fukuda joined 134 other lawmakers in proposing a secular alternative to the shrine, citing constitutional concerns.
Japan's non-nuclear weapons policy
Fukuda was not forced to resign; Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi described his remarks as "simply an observation that any basic policy of a country can be reviewed" and insists that his government has no intention of reviewing the principles. Koizumi continues to reaffirm the principles in each of his addresses for the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Peace Memorial Ceremonies.
2017 Tokyo prefectural election
LDP leader Shinzo Abe took office as Prime Minister following the 2012 general election and strengthened his position in the 2014 general election. However, Abe's government was subsequently struck by criticism for its handling of the Moritomo Gakuen scandal and controversial remarks by Defense Minister Tomomi Inada. In the meantime, Yuriko Koike won the 2016 Tokyo gubernatorial election as an independent candidate, and left the LDP in June 2017 to found a new local political party, Tomin First, to challenge the LDP in the prefectural election. At the time of the election, Koike was widely believed to be eyeing a future bid to replace Abe as prime minister.
Kizuna Party
On August 3, 2012 the Kizuna Party in concert with six other minor opposition parties (People's Life First, Japanese Communist Party, Social Democratic Party, Your Party, New Party Nippon (which has no lower-house lawmaker) and the New Renaissance Party) agreed to submit a no confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda in an effort to block the passage of the bill raising Japan's consumption tax from 5% to 10%. In the Japanese diet the support of 51 lawmakers is required to submit a co-confidence motion to the lower house. The motion was submitted to the lower house on August 7, along with a censure motion against Noda. The main opposition Liberal Democratic Party was also considering its own no-confidence motion and censure motions if Noda did not agree to call a general election. The no-confidence motion was voted down 246 to 86, with the DPJ voting against and the LDP and its partner New Komeito deciding to be absent from the vote after Noda agreed to hold elections "soon".
Murayama Cabinet
The governed Japan under the leadership of Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama from 1994 until a 1995 Cabinet Reshuffle. Murayama was elected prime minister by the National Diet on 29 June 1994 after the threat of a no-confidence vote had brought down the previous minority Hata Cabinet. Murayama's and his cabinet's formal investiture by the Emperor took place one day later.
Takeaki Matsumoto
Matsumoto is a great great grandson of Itō Hirobumi, the first Prime Minister of Japan. Matsumoto's father, Juro Matsumoto, was a senior member of the Liberal Democratic Party and was the Minister of Defense from August 1989 to February 1990. Matsumoto was selected as Foreign Minister of Japan in 2011 by Prime Minister Naoto Kan, after the resignation of his predecessor, Seiji Maehara, only two days before the March 11 earthquake and tsunami and subsequent Fukushima I nuclear disaster.
Bunmei Ibuki
On 26 December 2012, Bunmei Ibuki was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan. He presided over the day of his inauguration, the election of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe.
Anti-nuclear power movement in Japan
The current Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who came to power in 2012, has put nuclear energy back on the political agenda, with plans to restart as many reactors as possible. In July 2015, the government submitted its ideas for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions to the United Nations, and the proposal included a target for nuclear power to meet at least 20% of Japan's electricity consumption by 2030. Renewable energy sources, such as hydropower and solar power, would contribute more than 22%.
National Security Council (Japan)
The of Japan is an inter-agency body established to coordinate the national security policies of Japan. An initiative of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, the Council replaces the previous Security Council and is modeled after the United States National Security Council. It is headed by the country's National Security Advisor, currently Shotaro Yachi.