"No Evening Gatherings, Communicating by Email Instead of Phone"... Party Discontent Grows Despite Prime Minister's 72% Approval Rating

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is enjoying high approval ratings, but reports have emerged that dissatisfaction is brewing within her own Liberal Democratic Party.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Photo by AP Yonhap News

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According to Yonhap News, on the 13th, the Asahi Shimbun reported, "There is a chilly atmosphere within the party regarding Prime Minister Takaichi's unilateral and decisive style of governance." The newspaper added, "Since taking office, Prime Minister Takaichi has managed affairs through a 'top-down' approach, making decisions only among her close aides, and rarely holding prior negotiations or consultations with party executives."

Prime Minister Takaichi is also known to rarely attend evening gatherings and prefers to communicate with even her closest lawmakers via email rather than by phone. The newspaper quoted lawmakers as saying that this lack of communication between the Prime Minister and the Liberal Democratic Party has forced party members to try to read the Prime Minister's intentions themselves, which has led to growing suspicion. One senior lawmaker said, "I have no idea what the Prime Minister's office is thinking," while another remarked, "If you go against her wishes, you lose your position."

This sense of fear is largely attributed to Prime Minister Takaichi's recent abrupt replacement of Yasukazu Hamada, chairman of the House of Representatives Steering Committee, who had advocated for traditional parliamentary practices such as cooperation with opposition parties following the general election in February. At one point, there were even rumors of Hiroshi Kajiyama, head of the Diet Affairs Committee, being replaced. The newspaper reported, "There is growing discontent over Prime Minister Takaichi's style of governance," noting that while no one openly criticizes the Prime Minister, there is also a lack of enthusiasm for actively supporting her.

In reality, Prime Minister Takaichi reportedly pays little attention to the internal party discontent. A lawmaker who supports her commented, "Even under the Koizumi administration, which faced constant criticism from within the party, public opinion was supportive," adding, "As long as there is public support, some internal confusion can be managed."

Indeed, Prime Minister Takaichi has high approval ratings. According to a survey conducted by the Nikkei and TV Tokyo from March 27 to 29 among Japanese citizens aged 18 and older, support for the Takaichi Cabinet rose by 3 percentage points from the previous poll to 72%, recovering to the 70% range since December last year.

Meanwhile, bolstered by her strong approval ratings, Prime Minister Takaichi is rallying pro-constitutional amendment forces and accelerating related discussions. At the regular party convention of the Liberal Democratic Party on the 12th, she declared, "The time has come to amend the constitution," and asserted, "I want our party to enter next year's convention with a concrete proposal for constitutional amendment in place."

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