Japan’s parliament elects Sanae Takaichi as nation’s first female prime minister

TOKYO AP Japan s parliament elected ultraconservative Sanae Takaichi as the country s first female prime minister Tuesday a day after her struggling party struck a coalition deal with a new partner expected to pull her governing bloc further to the right Takaichi replaces Shigeru Ishiba ending a three-month political vacuum and wrangling since the Liberal Democratic Party s disastrous vote loss in July Ishiba who lasted only one year as prime minister resigned with his Cabinet earlier in the day paving the way for his successor Takaichi won votes four more than a majority compared to won by Yoshikoko Noda head of the largest opposition party the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan in the lower house which elects the prime minister The LDP s off-the-cuff alliance with the Osaka-based rightwing Japan Innovation Party or Ishin no Kai ensured her premiership because the opposition is not united Takaichi s untested alliance is still short of a majority in both houses of parliament and will need to court other opposition groups to pass any ordinance a vulnerability that could make her governing body unstable and short-lived Political stability is essential right now Takaichi mentioned at Monday s signing ceremony with the JIP leader and Osaka Gov Hirofumi Yoshimura Without stability we cannot push measures for a strong business activity or diplomacy The two parties signed a coalition agreement on policies underscoring Takaichi s hawkish and nationalistic views Their last-minute deal came after the Liberal Democrats lost its longtime partner the Buddhist-backed Komeito which has a more dovish and centrist stance The breakup threatened a change of power for the LDP which has governed Japan almost uninterrupted for decades Later in the day Takaichi will present a Cabinet with a number of allies of LDP s majority of powerful kingmaker Taro Aso and others who backed her in the party leadership vote JIP will not hold ministerial posts in Takaichi s Cabinet until his party is confident about its partnership with the LDP Yoshimura declared Takaichi is running on deadline a major framework speech later this week talks with U S President Donald Trump and regional summits She demands to fleetly tackle rising prices and compile economy-boosting measures by late December to address general frustration While she is the first woman serving as Japan s prime minister she is in no rush to promote gender equality or diversity Takaichi is among Japanese politicians who have stonewalled measures for women s advancement Takaichi supports the imperial family s male-only succession and opposes same-sex marriage and allowing separate surnames for married couples A protege of assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Takaichi is expected to emulate his policies including stronger military and market system as well as revising Japan s pacifist constitution With a potentially weak grip on power it s unknown how much Takaichi would be able to achieve When Komeito left the governing coalition it cited the LDP s lax response to slush fund scandals that led to their consecutive polling defeats The centrist party also raised concern about Takaichi s revisionist view of Japan s wartime past and her regular prayers at Yasukuni Shrine despite protests from Beijing and Seoul that see the visits as lack of remorse about Japanese aggression as well as her contemporary xenophobic remarks Takaichi has toned down her hawkish rhetorics On Friday she sent a religious ornament instead of going to Yasukuni Source