Japanese PM Election Held Wednesday, Sanae Takaichi Almost Certainly Won

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi/DOK 内閣広報室 / Cabinet Public Affairs Office

Japan's parliament is scheduled to hold a vote next Wednesday to choose the next prime minister, with Sanae Takaichi almost certain to be elected as parliament begins a special Diet session for 150 days.

As reported by ANTARA from Kyodo, Friday, February 13, the vote is scheduled as Takaichi's new government is only a few months old and has taken a stronger hold on the House of Representatives, after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in the lower house election on February 8.

In the election, the LDP and its junior coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, won 352 seats, more than two-thirds of the influential lower house, up from the slim majority the coalition held before the election.

The prime minister is expected to form his second Cabinet after the vote. Senior government sources said Takaichi intends to retain his first cabinet line-up formed when he became prime minister in October last year.

In addition, Takaichi indicated that he intends to continue seeking cooperation from opposition parties because the ruling coalition remains a minority in the 248-seat Advisory Council.

For the special session of the Diet, which will last 150 days, the initial stage is expected to focus on the approval of the initial budget for fiscal year 2026, which is expected to be passed by the end of March before the start of the fiscal year in April, ahead of a possible snap general election.

The session is expected to last at least until July 17, the same length as a regular session of Parliament, which was dissolved on its opening day in January for elections.

The schedule was officially conveyed by the government to the ruling and opposition parties on Friday. Meanwhile, the prime minister's speech and three other senior ministers will be delivered on February 20.