LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Japan's lawmakers just elected the country's first woman prime minister. She takes power as old political coalitions are breaking apart and new ones are taking shape. Japan's prime minister now has a week to prepare for a scheduled visit by President Trump. NPR's Anthony Kuhn was in Tokyo earlier today, and he joins us now from Seoul. Good morning.
ANTHONY KUHN, BYLINE: Hey, Leila.
FADEL: OK. So tell us about this new leader and how she became or becomes the first woman to be prime minister in Japan.
KUHN: Right. Sanae Takaichi is 64 years old. She's been a lawmaker for about three decades. She was previously an economic security minister. She was also previously a heavy metal band drummer.
FADEL: Oh.
KUHN: And she's been a longtime fan of ex-British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Now, her party, the Liberal Democratic Party, has stayed in power for most of the past seven decades. But lately, voters have been angry at corruption within the party and inflation, and they've handed them two big losses in a row in national elections. And the LDP's coalition partner of 26 years walked out on them. So in order to get enough votes in parliament, the LDP has now partnered with another opposition party - the Japan Innovation Party, or JIP. And that party has been critical of the LDP, so experts are interested to see if this marriage of convenience is going to hold.
FADEL: Interesting. A range - a former heavy metal band drummer and a fan of ex-U.K. PM Margaret Thatcher. Does Japan having a woman prime minister for the first time mean a boost for women's status more broadly in Japan?
KUHN: Well, not necessarily. She's certainly broken the glass ceiling herself, and that's very big. But one of her first moves was to appoint only two women as Cabinet ministers. That's not a lot. Japan already has the worst gender inequality and the worst political empowerment for women of any wealthy democracy. And Takaichi herself is in favor of traditional gender roles. She opposes same-sex marriages, opposes married women using their own surnames and she supports male-only succession to Japan's imperial throne. So even within Japan's conservative LDP, Takaichi is seen as being on the far right.
FADEL: Interesting. Now, you mentioned voters handed her party two big losses. What challenges is she facing?
KUHN: Well, one of them is populism, and that populism is directed a lot at the LDP. For example, their new partner, the JIP, has called the LDP part of a corrupt and unaccountable political establishment. Critics say they don't have effective solutions to Japan's big problems, such as an aging society and stagnant economy. And voters have defected en masse to a lot of parties with populist platforms, including one called Sanseito that has an anti-immigration platform. And Takaichi could be under pressure to take similar approaches.
FADEL: Now, President Trump's visit is coming up fast. What does this prime minister's election mean for ties with the U.S.?
KUHN: Well, she's on the same page with Washington on security issues, beefing up defense. The problem is Japan is strapped for money. It doesn't have much to spend. Also, Takaichi may have to strike up a, you know, relationship with President Trump. She's not the bromance type as some of her predecessors, and she's likely to be very preoccupied with her own political survival.
FADEL: That's NPR's Anthony Kuhn. Thank you.
KUHN: Thank you, Leila. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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