❓WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump congratulated Japan on electing its first female prime minister after the right-leaning Liberal Democratic Party selected Sanae Takaichi to lead them.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: President Donald J. Trump, Sanae Takaichi, and the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan.
📍WHEN & WHERE: October 6, in Japan and via Truth Social.
💬KEY QUOTE: “Japan has just elected its first female Prime Minister, a highly respected person of great wisdom and strength. This is tremendous news for the incredible people of Japan. Congratulations to all!” – Donald Trump
🎯IMPACT: Sanae Takaichi is expected to assume the role of Prime Minister following formal confirmation, with significant ties to the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
President Donald J. Trump on Monday issued a congratulatory message to Japan after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) selected Sanae Takaichi as its leader in an internal vote, writing: “Japan has just elected its first female Prime Minister, a highly respected person of great wisdom and strength. This is tremendous news for the incredible people of Japan. Congratulations to all!”
Though Takaichi has not yet formally assumed the premiership, she is expected to do so after the right-leaning LDP’s internal election. The party holds only a plurality in the Japanese legislature’s lower house, so she will need parliamentary confirmation to become Prime Minister. Sitting Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, has pledged to resign this week, clearing the path for her accession. Takaichi is viewed as a close ally of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, known for his warm ties with President Trump.
Takaichi, 64, is one of the most conservative figures in the LDP and has held significant ministerial posts in internal affairs, gender equality, and economic security. She has long advocated for strengthening Japan’s defense capabilities and revising its pacifist constitution, while promoting a more assertive foreign policy. Domestically, she opposes recognition of same‑sex marriage and resists allowing married couples to adopt separate surnames.
Her rise comes at a time of deep structural challenges in Japan. The country is enduring a demographic crisis: in 2024, births dropped to a historic low of around 686,000, marking the first time the annual total fell below 700,000 since record‑keeping began. The total fertility rate declined to 1.15, far blow the 2.1 threshold needed for population stability, and deaths exceeded births by a wide margin. The country’s population shrinkage also accelerated, with nearly 900,000 net losses in 2024 alone.
Japan has been under pressure to embrace mass migration, but still maintains some of the strictest asylum and immigration policies among advanced nations. In 2023, it approved just 303 out of 13,823 asylum applications, a rate of about 2.2 percent.
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