Japan’s PM Takaichi considering Cabinet reshuffle, changes to party leadership appointments

TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi began earnestly consider reshuffling her Cabinet and making changes to Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership appointments, and she could act before an expected extraordinary Diet session in the fall.The key focus will be whether she can put together a line-up that prominently promotes policies reflecting her “Takaichi style”, such as responsible and proactive public finances.For the Prime Minister, whose base within the party is not exactly rock-solid, personnel decisions serve as a valuable tool for maintaining control over the party, of which she is president. The Prime Minister has been gathering information on the ways that LDP lawmakers responded to her policies and Bills with special backing during the latter half of the extended Diet session.Takaichi is said to have “begun evaluating the lawmakers”, according to a government official. She is expected to begin formulating specific personnel plans as soon as she makes a political decision on a possible consumption tax cut.The current composition of the party leadership strongly reflects the preferences of Deputy President Taro Aso, who supported Takaichi in the LDP presidential election in October 2025.A symbol of this is secretary-general Shunichi Suzuki, who is Aso’s brother-in-law and a member of the Aso faction. The same as Aso, Suzuki has served as the finance minister and is regarded as a proponent of fiscal discipline. Although he maintains some distance from Takaichi, replacing him could create a rift with Aso, and the party is closely watching how his treatment is handled.In a Cabinet reshuffle, the first Cabinet appointment for someone in the Japan Innovation Party (JIP) is expected. While JIP leader Hirofumi Yoshimura has limited his comments regarding any selection to stating that “the Prime Minister will decide”, there is strong support within the JIP for the post of head of the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, which oversees local autonomy.However, LDP party executives have stated that “it is too early to hand over the key post of head of the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry”, suggesting that a position of a minister of state for special missions in the Cabinet Office, such as administrative reform and other matters, would be more appropriate.One is being tipped as being created for a newly established ministerial post related to the “second capital” concept, as specified in the relevant legislation.A new Cabinet line-up also carries implications for the LDP presidential election scheduled for next September, when the current term expires. Takaichi appointed all of her rivals from 2025’s leadership election to Cabinet posts or key party positions. They include Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and LDP Policy Research Council Chairman Takayuki Kobayashi.“Takaichi will be forced to decide whether to continue co-opting them to make it difficult for them to run in the leadership election, or to refrain from appointing them to key posts due to differences in policy direction,” a veteran party member explained. THE JAPAN NEWS/ASIA NEWS NETWORK