Yoshihide Suga elected as the new Prime Minister of Japan

After the recent resignation of Shinzo Abe, Japan has just elected its latest Prime Minister, and its Yoshihide Suga. He won the leadership race of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) on 14 September 2020. Suga’s likelihood is set to win a parliamentary vote later this week and replace outgoing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Abe, Japan’s longest-serving premier, said last month that he’s quitting because of ill health, ending a nearly eight-year term. The 71-year-old Suga, is known as Abe’s trusted aide. He won 377 votes out of 534 votes cast, and 535 possible votes, in the LDP election by the party’s members of parliament and representatives of its 47 local chapters.

Interesting Facts about Suga

• Suga has a reputation for inscrutability, who has become a key government adviser, spokesman and policy enforcer.
• He has so far served in several key political roles, including most recently as chief cabinet secretary.
• He’s also an effective face of Abe’s government, serving as its top spokesman and defending decisions in daily press conferences.
• Suga, the son of a strawberry farmer grew up in rural Akita in northern Japan.
• He came to Tokyo after high school and worked odd jobs to put himself through night college.
• In 1987, Suga got his appointment to the first office. The position was a municipal assembly member in Yokohama outside Tokyo.
• Suga won a lower house seat in 1996. He was a long-time backer of Abe, pushing him to stand for a second term despite his disastrous first run in office. It ended after just a year.

A Brief History of Yoshihide’s Journey

When Abe defied the odds and returned to power in 2012, he appointed Suga to the powerful chief cabinet secretary role. From this he is said to have helped push through several landmark Abe policies, including a loosening of restrictions on foreign workers. He has held the key post of chief cabinet secretary since 2012. Suga acted as Abe’s top government spokesperson, coordinating policies and keeping bureaucrats in line. He made reference to his background in accepting the party’s nomination as the leader, saying he “started from zero”.

“I, with this background, was able to become the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party with all its history and tradition. I will devote the whole of myself to Japan and the Japanese people,” he said.

According to experts, Suga is pragmatic rather than ideological. The lawmakers see him as a neutral figure along the political spectrum within the LDP. But his rather anodyne image got something of a reboot last year with the declaration of a new imperial era to mark the ascension to the throne of Emperor Naruhito. Suga unveiled the much-awaited name for the era: Reiwa. So, the image of him holding up the hand-drawn calligraphy for the name earned him the affectionate nickname “Uncle Reiwa”. He has allowed only occasional glimpses into his personal life. interviews revealed that he bookends his day with 100 sit-ups in the morning and 100 in the evening. Also, he has a weakness for pancakes.

A Final Word

Speculation is simmering that Suga will call a snap election for parliament’s lower house as soon as next month. This is to boost his chances of winning a full three-year term as LDP chief next year.

A vote for the lower chamber must be held by late October 2021. A Reuters poll showed that Japanese manufacturers remained pessimistic for a 14th straight month in September.