Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi reshuffled her Cabinet for the first time on Thursday, focusing her changes on less prominent positions while keeping key figures intact. While the reshuffle saw more than half the Cabinet replaced, almost every senior Liberal Democratic Party executive remained, as did the prominent Cabinet members. The most noteworthy changes were the addition of a Japan Innovation Party member to the Cabinet, the removal of the LDP’s Upper House secretary-general and the departure of a future prime minister hopeful.
This was not what many observers anticipated. Takaichi has faced discord within the party ranks, the specter of a declining public approval rating and a looming LDP leadership race. Traditionally, Cabinet reshuffles have been tools for managing intraparty competition, so it would not have been unusual to see substantial personnel changes as the prime minister managed allies and rivals.
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