Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s cabinet reshuffle Thursday set the stage for next year’s race for the presidency of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, with a potential rival, Yoshimasa Hayashi, leaving his internal affairs minister’s post and the government.
Takaichi has retained many influential figures in key posts in an apparent effort to solidify her power base with an eye to the next LDP leadership election, in which she is expected to seek another term. Hayashi, however, was the exception.
Political experts said Takaichi appears to have prioritized “loyalty” to herself over the LDP’s unity, while cautioning that she needs to exercise restraint, including by being accountable for her decisions and actions, amid the ruling bloc’s overwhelming dominance in the powerful House of Representatives.
The next LDP presidential contest is expected to take place in the fall next year, as Takaichi’s term as LDP president will run through September 2027, covering the remaining two years of former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s original three-year term.
Kentaro Yamamoto, a Kokugakuin University professor, said Takaichi had been expected to try to bring into the cabinet the rivals she faced in last October’s leadership election and build an “all-encompassing mainstream coalition” in the party ahead of her bid for reelection next year.
