Japan's new Iron Lady can play heavy metal politics

Sanae Takaichi's longevity as prime minister calls for reining in her more extreme tendencies and allies while pursuing bold policies.

- Gearoid Reidy

Ms Sanae Takaichi, who made history as Japan's first woman prime minister after a parliamentary vote on Oct 21, has ambitious beliefs about the country's place in the world. She also recently displayed a level of political flexibility that many feared she might not possess, says the writer.

(PHOTO: REUTERS)

Ms Sanae Takaichi has just been confirmed as Japan’s first female prime minister. But more important than her gender might be her taste for headbanging - in music and politics.

In what has been a rock-and-roller-coaster two weeks, she unexpectedly emerged as leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), swiftly followed by her coalition partner abandoning their longtime alliance.

What came next was a flurry of speculation that she might join the very short list of party leaders who never became prime minister.

But on Oct 21, she made history after a frantic realignment of governing parties.

One of the few things the world knows about Ms Takaichi is her fondness for heavy metal music. A former drummer in a group, she has said the likes of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest relieve her stress.

She had plenty to deal with over the past 10 days, starting with the rupture with coalition ally Komeito and the brief floating of pretenders ready to snatch a premiership that looked like hers.

But she pulled off a turn-it-up-to-Il coup by securing the support of the Japan Innovation Party, known as Ishin, an Osaka-based upstart that commands politics in the city.