Overview
- Takaichi defeated Shinjiro Koizumi in the Oct. 4 Liberal Democratic Party vote, positioning her for confirmation in a parliamentary ballot scheduled for Oct. 15.
- The LDP lost its absolute majorities over the past year but remains the largest force in the lower house, giving Takaichi a strong path to be elected prime minister despite tighter coalition math.
- Japanese stocks surged 4.6% to 47,852.29 and the yen weakened to about 149.76 per dollar after her win, with investors focused on her finance minister pick and the Bank of Japan’s policy stance.
- An Abe ally, Takaichi backs big fiscal spending and continued monetary easing, tougher immigration rules, and stronger defense, and she has signaled she could seek changes to the U.S. investment deal if it disadvantages Japan.
- Her past visits to Yasukuni Shrine and revisionist views on wartime history may strain ties with China and South Korea, even as she pledges a cabinet with far higher female representation than Japan has seen.