Sana-mania in Japan as Takaichi is expected to win a landslide

Opinion polls this week suggest the ruling LDP and its coalition partner could secure a two-thirds lower-house majority, and much of the party’s momentum is linked to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s high public profile and social media reach.

Sanae Takaichi, Japan's first female prime minister, has become a prominent public figure as voters prepare for Sunday’s lower house election. Eight months ago the ruling Liberal Democratic Party looked vulnerable after losing its parliamentary majority and facing a funding scandal. The party elected Takaichi as leader in an internal contest last October, and her personal profile has been central to the LDP’s recovery. Opinion polls this week suggest the LDP and its coalition partner could win a large majority in the lower house. Key facts: - Opinion polls this week suggested the LDP and its minor coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, could win more than 300 of the 465 lower-house seats, a two-thirds majority and potential control of parliamentary committees. - Takaichi became party leader in October and is Japan’s first female prime minister; she has met leaders including Donald Trump, Xi Jinping and South Korea’s president Lee Jae Myung, and has been linked in reporting to an unresolved diplomatic row with Beijing over Taiwan. - She has spoken of sweeping tax cuts and proposed suspending the 8% consumption tax on food for two years; those pledges have unsettled bond markets and drawn scrutiny. - Reporting notes close public attention to her personal image and habits, including a large social media following (her official X account has about 2.6 million followers) and strong consumer interest in items associated with her. - Campaign risks cited include doubts among some voters about whether the proposed tax suspension would help struggling families and uncertainty over whether younger admirers will translate interest into turnout on a forecast cold election weekend. Summary: If polling holds, a substantial parliamentary majority would give the ruling coalition greater scope in the Diet to pursue its agenda on economic and security issues, including the cost-of-living challenges and a volatile yen. The immediate next step is Sunday’s lower-house election, where voters will determine whether to endorse Takaichi’s leadership and the ruling coalition’s platform.