Sanae Takaichi has won Japan’s ruling LDP presidential election, paving the way to become the country’s first female prime minister.

Tokyo

Former internal affairs minister Sanae Takaichi won the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) presidential election on Saturday. Takaichi defeated farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi in a runoff vote and will replace Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba as party leader. With the LDP-Komeito coalition remaining the largest parliamentary force and the opposition divided, Takaichi is expected to become Japan’s next prime minister later this month. Her term as party head will run until 2027.

Among five candidates, Takaichi, Koizumi, and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi were seen as frontrunners. The other contenders were former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi and former foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi, both University of Tokyo graduates with Harvard master’s degrees.

At 64, Takaichi is set to become Japan’s first female prime minister. She was the leading public favorite, while 44-year-old Koizumi, son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, had strong support among lawmakers. Takaichi is known for her staunch conservative views, while Koizumi, who would have been Japan’s youngest postwar leader, and Hayashi, a moderate with extensive experience, were early front-runners.

In early September, Ishiba announced his resignation after the ruling coalition lost its majority in the July House of Councillors election. The coalition also lost the House of Representatives majority in the October 2024 election under Ishiba, who had only recently become prime minister.