Japan's political situation

Takaichi closer to becoming Japan's prime minister

Japan is likely to have a new government. This is clear after the right-wing Nippon Ishin party and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) signed an agreement to form a coalition.

The agreement means that Japan looks set to have its first female prime minister in LDP leader Sanae Takaichi.

The LDP and Ishin are two seats away from forming a majority government, which means they need support from other parties. The Japanese lower house is set to vote on the prime minister tomorrow, Tuesday.

The Tokyo stock market rose 3.4 percent on Monday and closed at a new record after news that a new government was close.

The government crisis in Japan - this is what happened

• Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba resigned in early September 2025 after the Liberal Democratic Party lost its majority in both houses of parliament.
• Sanae Takaichi was elected as the new leader of the LDP on 4 October 2025, becoming the first woman to hold the post.
• The LDP and the right-wing Nippon Ishin Party agreed to form a coalition government, paving the way for Takaichi to become Japan's first female prime minister.
• Takaichi has profiled herself as a conservative nationalist and critic of the central bank's interest rate hikes, and has been compared to Margaret Thatcher in the Japanese media.