Takaichi Needs More Than Her Winning Personality

The streets of Tokyo were dusted with a rare snowfall as election day broke on Sunday, while other parts of the country were issuing emergency alerts as a blizzard gripped much of Japan.

It’s perhaps for this reason that a country with several of the snowiest regions hasn’t had a winter election for decades. But bad weather couldn’t deter the electorate, which turned out in greater numbers than in the last vote in 2024. They were given a simple question: whether or not to endorse Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi with a mandate to rule.