Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who swept to the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on a wave of enthusiasm, has marked one year since becoming party president, and analysts say the so-called "Takaichi fever" that spread among young and female voters early in her tenure has lost much of its force.
The Mainichi Shimbun, looking back on the year since Takaichi took office, reported on the 4th that her support base is weakening as expectations among moderate voters, who drove her early momentum, have turned into disappointment over policy results.
Takaichi won the LDP presidential election on Oct. 4 last year and launched her cabinet on the 21st of the same month. She was greeted with expectations that she would change the framework of Japanese politics as a politician who did not inherit her seat, alongside the symbolism of being the first woman prime minister in Japan's constitutional history.
Among younger Japanese in particular, a new word emerged: "sanakatsu," combining "sana" from the prime minister's given name Sanae with "oshikatsu," a term for enthusiastically supporting a particular person or character. Some bought the same products Takaichi used, and politicians came to be consumed like entertainers.
That mood has faded over the past year. The Mainichi said support fell particularly among moderate voters as the changes initially expected failed to materialize sufficiently in the course of the Takaichi cabinet's policy drive.
A woman in her 30s identified as A, who lives in Chiba Prefecture and works in the aviation industry, told the newspaper that Takaichi's remarks suggesting intervention in a Taiwan contingency had distanced Japan from China, questioning whether it "really serves Japan's interests." She also expressed disappointment with the government's response to rising prices, saying she sees "no policies that make me feel life has gotten better."
The Mainichi also reported that the expression "sanakatsu," once widely used on social media, has become hard to find in recent months.
Still, the cabinet's support base has not collapsed entirely. In a Mainichi poll conducted last month, the cabinet's approval rating stood at 45%, above the 40% who said they did not support it. That is a steep drop from the more than 65% recorded just after the cabinet was launched, but it still represents a certain level of backing.
The Mainichi said that while the high expectations surrounding the start of her government have disappeared, conservative-leaning supporters, estimated at about 40%, are serving as a prop for the Takaichi cabinet.
Assessments of Takaichi's record on economic policy are also mixed.
The Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that while Takaichi has pushed to expand fiscal spending under the banner of "responsible, proactive fiscal policy," she has in practice incorporated much of the input from bureaucrats at the Ministry of Finance and elsewhere in actual policy decisions. The paper noted, however, that there is a political cost for her, as someone who claims to be the political heir to former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in revealing that she is taking a different line from "Abenomics," which centered on expanding fiscal spending.
The Nikkei said Takaichi "has shown two faces: consideration for markets through the Ministry of Finance, and opposition to the ministry," adding that "with even the U.S. government raising questions about Japan's economic policy, an ambiguous course mindful of her support base has reached its limits." The paper argued the Takaichi cabinet needs to revise an economic policy devoted solely to fiscal expansion.
