Sanae Takaichi - the victorious leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP), who will be the new prime minister and the first woman to hold the office in the country's history, pledged to “work, work,“, repeating the phrase five times in her first speech. The election was broadcast online on TBS.
“Together, we have opened a new era for the LDP. Thank you very much! We have hard work ahead of us; there are many things we must do together, with all our might. Many policies must be adopted quickly... We must transform the LDP into a party that turns people's worries into hope. We are few and we all must work. I'm launching a slogan for work-life balance. "I will work, work, work, work, work," Takaichi said in his first speech after being elected.
The election for prime minister will be held in mid-October in parliament. The Liberal Democratic Party, having lost its majority in both houses, will have to negotiate with the opposition to choose its own candidate for prime minister. The opposition parties, which jointly hold a majority in both houses, could theoretically nominate a single candidate and choose their own prime minister, but this is highly unlikely given the wide range of political views among the opposition parties.