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Japan's first female prime minister gambled that she could use her popularity to revive her ruling party. Her bet paid off, and she scored the party's biggest landslide ever in snap elections on Sunday. NPR's Anthony Kuhn has more.
ANTHONY KUHN, BYLINE: Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pinned rosettes above the names of winning candidates for the House of Representatives at Liberal Democratic Party headquarters. The LDP had lost two previous elections in a row. But Sophia University political scientist Koichi Nakano says that Takaichi appeared to voters to offer something new.
KOICHI NAKANO: Compared to her predecessors, of course, she projects a fresh image because her predecessors are all dull, old men in gray suits.
KUHN: The LDP won a two-thirds majority in the lower House, enough to override vetoes by the opposition-controlled upper House. A new center left coalition, meanwhile, lost more than half of its seats. Takaichi will likely take this as a mandate to pursue her conservative agenda, including more defense spending and possibly revising Japan's pacifist constitution. Jeffrey Hornung is a Japan expert with the RAND Corporation.
JEFFREY HORNUNG: It's really amazing given that she's only been prime minister since October, and to already be in control of this much political capital.
KUHN: Japan's stock market climbed to new highs in anticipation of Takaichi's stimulus spending and tax cuts. President Trump congratulated Takaichi and will host her at the White House next month. Takaichi is currently at odds with China over her comments that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan could trigger a Japanese military response. She might ask Trump for help with that. Jeffrey Hornung says Takaichi may face U.S. demands for Japan to contribute more to their alliance.
HORNUNG: She can't say anymore, well, I can't do that because the opposition parties will turn it down. I mean, she has the numbers to pass policies and do things.
KUHN: China could choose to wait Takaichi out. But that could take a while as she doesn't appear to be going anywhere soon.
Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Seoul.
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