Shigeru Ishiba Officially Japan's New Prime Minister: Meet His Cabinet

Shigeru Ishiba officially became the 102nd Prime Minister of Japan in the early afternoon of October 1. He took over from Fumio Kishida, who with 1094 consecutive days in office became the eighth longest-serving premier in history.

Fellow lawmakers from the lower and upper houses of the Japanese Parliament voted in Ishiba as the new leader. Ishiba is 67 years old and is the first prime minister from Tottori Prefecture. He won with 291 and 143 votes, respectively, gaining the majority in both chambers.

Earlier the same morning, Ishiba told reporters he wanted to create a government "that faced the people of Japan head-on."

At just after 5:30 PM, Ishiba visited the Imperial Palace to officially accept the Emperor's appointment as Japan's new prime minister.

What the Vote Means and What Comes Next

The vote was almost ceremonial. This is because Ishiba is a member of the ruling party. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), holds the majority in both houses in a coalition with the Komeito. Therefore, Ishiba was widely expected to be voted in.

Following meetings in the National Diet, Ishiba holds his first Prime Minister's Press Conference on the evening of October 1.

Pledging to "protect Japanese citizens," he promised to create a government that could garner the "understanding and empathy of the people." He said, "I will speak the truth to the people with courage and sincerity, conducting humble, sincere, and warm politics."

On economics, Ishiba emphasized that he would largely continue the previous administration's policy of leading the country out of deflation by fighting the rising costs of living.

When asked about defense and his idea of "revising" the Japan-US relationship, Ishiba explained he didn't see it as a step backward in the alliance. "I see it as a stepping stone towards strengthening our relationship even more," he said.

*Fumio Kishida leaves the PM's Office on October 1. (©Sankei by Kanata Iwasaki*)

A New Cabinet

Earlier on October 1, the new prime minister officially announced the formation of his cabinet. With 19 members, the list includes many politicians close to him. There are 10 members not affiliated with any faction, much like Ishiba himself. Commentators greeted the move as an attempt to break with the LDP's past in light of the political funding scandal associated with its factions.

The composition of his cabinet gives an idea of how Ishiba plans to lead his administration. One characteristic is Ishiba's choice of many new faces as ministers. Of the nineteen positions, thirteen are in their first ministerial post.

Here are some highlights.

Who's Who in Ishiba's Cabinet

There are several familiar faces from the previous administration. The age of all ministers are in brackets.

Minister of Foreign Affairs: Takeshi Iwaya (67). He was Minister of Defense from 2018-2019.
Minister of Defense: Gen Nakatani (66). He has held this position between 2014-2016.
Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications: Seiichiro Murakami (72). He has held the position of Minister in charge of administrative reform.
Chief Cabinet Secretary: Yoshimasa Hayashi (63), who retains his position.
Minister of Finance: Katsunobu Kato (68), who under Kishida held several positions, including Minister of Health.
Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism: Tetsuo Saito (72) stays as well. He is a member of the minority coalition party, the Komeito.

Ishiba's first-time cabinet ministers follow:

Minister of Justice: Hideki Makihara (53)
Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology: Toshiko Abe (65)
Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare: Takamaro Fukuoka (51)
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries: Yasuhiro Ozato (66)
Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry: Yoji Muto (68)
Minister of Environment: Keiichiro Asao (60)
Minister of Digital Transformation: Masaaki Taira (57)
Minister for Reconstruction: Tadahiko Ito (60)
Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission: Manabu Sakai (59)
Minister in charge of Policies Related to Children: Junko Mihara (60)
Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization: Ryosei Akazawa (63). He will also take charge of Ishiba's key policy proposal: setting up a Disaster Prevention Agency.
Minister in charge of Economic Security: Minoru Kiuchi (59)
Minister in charge of Regional Revitalization: Yoshitaka Ito (75)

Special Mentions Among the Appointments

Among the younger additions, Justice Minister Makihara supported Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa during the LDP election, and she has also served in the same position. Makihara is a lawyer and previously served as vice minister of foreign affairs.

Minister for Digital Transformation Taira is known as someone knowledgeable about tech-related issues. He previously worked on the LDP's team promoting AI and digital transformation.

Health Minister Fukuoka has previous experience as state minister of cabinet office. Within the party, he directed the LDP's Health, Labor and Welfare Division. He currently chairs the LDP's House of Councillors Policy Research Council.

Only Two Women

Among the new faces, two are women — Toshiko Abe and Junko Mihara. They have positions traditionally associated with female appointees, namely that of Minister of Education and Minister in charge of child-related policies. Aside from the stereotyped impression of their assignments, they add up to three fewer women than in the last Kishida administration.

Mihara, after working as an actress, was elected to the National Diet in 2010. In the past, she worked as vice minister of health, and vice minister for gender equality with Seiko Noda.

Abe also has experience in various professions. After working as an assistant professor, and vice president of the Japan Nursing Association, she was first elected in 2010. She has served as vice minister of foreign affairs and is the current vice minister of education.

What Else to Know about the Veterans

Both Kato and Hayashi were candidates in the LDP leadership election. They are the only two of the eight other candidates who received ministerial appointments.

Hayashi in particular has created a reputation for himself as the politician to call in a time of crisis. He is seen as well-suited for the jack-of-all-trades position of Chief Cabinet Secretary.

New Minister of Internal Affairs Murakami has previously held the position of Minister in charge of Administrative reform. He is considered close to Ishiba. In addition, he was one of the twenty fellow lawmakers who endorsed Ishiba as a condition of his candidacy in LDP leadership campaign. Murakami is also known to have publicly criticized Shinzo Abe, calling him a "traitor." He says he has apologized for the statement to Abe's family.

Iwaya is Japan's new foreign minister. He previously held the position of defense minister from 2018-2019. He was also senior vice-minister of foreign affairs from 2006-2008.

Defense Minister Nakatani was first elected in 1990, after serving in the Ground Self-Defense Force. He was the Minister of Defense under Shinzo Abe from 2014-2016. In addition, he directed the Defense Agency before it became a ministry. Nakatani also chaired the LDP's Security Research Committee.

High Average Age

The average age among ministers is almost 64 years old, with Yoshitaka Ito as the oldest. Ito, 75, is the Minister in charge of Regional Revitalization.

The youngest member of the Ishiba Cabinet is Takamaro Fukuoka, who is 51. Among the nineteen positions, three people are in their 70s, 12 in their 60s, and five in their 50s.

Key Weeks Ahead in Politics

Whether these Cabinet members will stay will depend on how politics unfolds in the coming weeks.

On September 30, Ishiba announced that he would call a general election on October 27 and campaigning would start on October 15. With that in mind, Ishiba intends to dissolve the Lower House of the Diet on October 9. This will be the shortest period between taking office and dissolving the Diet for an election in the postwar period, according to local media.

Recent poll results suggest the LDP will likely perform well in the general election and Ishiba will likely stay prime minister. However, the Cabinet composition could change depending on election dynamics.

It will be a couple of busy weeks for political circles in Japan.

Author: Arielle Busetto