Tokyo [Japan], October 22: Japan's staunchly conservative former interior minister Sanae Takaichi was elected by parliament on Tuesday as the country's first female prime minister.
The 64-year-old succeeds the comparatively liberal Shigeru Ishiba, who recently announced his resignation following election defeats for their Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Takaichi owes her election to the LDP's new coalition partner, the conservative neoliberal Japan Innovation Party (Ishin).
The opposition camp could not agree on a joint candidate. Despite being the largest party, the LDP - even with the Innovation Party - is just short of a majority in parliament, meaning that it will continue to lead a minority government.
The fact that the Innovation Party has not contributed a single member to Takaichi's new Cabinet shows the party's cautious distance from the major government partner. This, they argue, also makes the alliance appear unstable. Takaichi, who used to play drums in a heavy metal band and likes to present herself as Japan's Iron Lady in the style of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, faces significant challenges. (DPA)
Source: Qatar Tribune