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Sanae Takaichi made history on Tuesday by becoming Japan’s first female prime minister. However, expectations of greater gender representation were quickly dampened when she appointed only two women to her 19-member cabinet just hours after taking office.

Takaichi had previously pledged to introduce levels of female representation similar to countries like Iceland, Finland, and Norway. In reality, only Satsuki Katayama, appointed as finance minister—the first woman ever to hold the position—and Kimi Onoda, named economic security minister, were included.

By comparison, six of Iceland’s 11 cabinet members are women, including its prime minister, Kristrún Frostadóttir. In Finland, women occupy 11 of 19 ministerial posts. Takaichi's predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, also appointed only two women, and the highest number ever in a Japanese cabinet was five under former prime minister Fumio Kishida.

Takaichi, a staunch conservative and leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic party (LDP) in coalition with a smaller nationalist party, has said she wants to raise awareness about women's health, citing her own experience with menopause. Yet her political stance remains rooted in traditional values, drawing comparisons to her role model, Margaret Thatcher.

She opposes changing a 19th-century law requiring married couples to share the same surname and rejects reforms that would allow female members of Japan’s imperial family to ascend the throne. While she has spoken against discrimination toward LGBTQ+ people, she still opposes same-sex marriage.

Reactions to her leadership have been mixed. Sociologist Chizuko Ueno wrote on X (formerly Twitter): “The prospect of a first female prime minister doesn’t make me happy.” Ueno said Takaichi's appointment may boost Japan’s global gender equality ranking, but added, “That doesn’t mean Japanese politics will become kinder to women.”

Others remain hopeful. Naomi Koshi, who became Japan’s youngest female mayor in 2012, told Kyodo News, “Takaichi becoming prime minister is significant and will have a broader impact on society.”

Takaichi faced limitations in selecting female ministers due to the low number of women in parliament. Even though a record 73 women were elected in last year’s lower house elections, they still represent only 15.7% of the 465-member chamber.

Japan ranked 118th out of 148 countries in the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap Index.
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