Shigeru Ishiba

The native form of this personal name is Ishiba Shigeru. This article uses the Western name order.

Shigeru Ishiba
石破 茂
File:Shigeru Ishiba 20240607.jpg Ishiba in 2024
Prime Minister of Japan
Taking office 1 October 2024
Monarch	Naruhito
Succeeding	Fumio Kishida
President of the Liberal Democratic Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 27 September 2024
Vice President	Tarō Asō
Secretary-General	Toshimitsu Motegi
Preceded by	Fumio Kishida
Ministerial offices Minister in charge of Overcoming Population Decline and Vitalizing Local Economy In office 3 September 2014 – 3 August 2016 Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Preceded by Office established Succeeded by Kozo Yamamoto Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries In office 24 September 2008 – 16 September 2009 Prime Minister Tarō Asō Preceded by Seiichi Ota Nobutaka Machimura (acting) Succeeded by Hirotaka Akamatsu Minister of Defense In office 26 September 2007 – 2 August 2008 Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda Preceded by Masahiko Kōmura Succeeded by Yoshimasa Hayashi Director-General of the Japan Defense Agency In office 30 September 2002 – 27 September 2004 Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi Preceded by Gen Nakatani Succeeded by Yoshinori Ohno Deputy Director-General of the Japan Defense Agency In office 6 January 2001 – 26 April 2001 Prime Minister Yoshirō Mori Preceded by Office established Succeeded by Kyogon Hagiyama Parliamentary Secretary for Defense In office 6 December 2000 – 6 January 2001 Prime Minister Yoshirō Mori Preceded by Seiji Nakamura Masataka Suzuki Succeeded by Office abolished Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries In office 4 July 2000 – 5 December 2000 Serving with Issui Miura Prime Minister Yoshirō Mori Preceded by Yoshio Yatsu Katsutoshi Kaneda Succeeded by Toshikatsu Matsuoka Naoki Tanaka In office 26 December 1992 – 21 June 1993 Serving with Ryōtarō Sudo Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa Preceded by Koji Futada Takao Jinnouchi Succeeded by Takehiko Endo
Party political offices Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party In office 26 September 2012 – 3 September 2014 President Shinzo Abe Preceded by Nobuteru Ishihara Succeeded by Sadakazu Tanigaki Chairperson of the Policy Research Council In office 29 September 2009 – 30 September 2011 President Sadakazu Tanigaki Preceded by Kosuke Hori Succeeded by Toshimitsu Motegi
Member of the House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office 8 July 1986
Preceded by	multi-member district
Constituency	Tottori at-large district (1986–1996) Tottori 1st district (1996–present)
Majority	85,456 (68.2%)
Personal details
Born	(1957-02-04) 4 February 1957 Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan
Political party	Liberal Democratic (1986–1993; 1997–present)
Other political affiliations	Nippon Kaigi Japan Renewal Party (1993–1994) New Frontier Party (1994–1996) Independent (1996–1997)
Spouse(s)	Yoshiko Ishiba (m. 1983)
Parents	Jirō Ishiba (father)
Education	Keio Senior High School
Alma mater	Keio University (LLB)
Signature	Shigeru Ishiba's signature
Website	Official website
A. ^ Nippon Kaigi is not a political party but a non-government organization and lobbying group.

Shigeru Ishiba (石破 茂, Ishiba Shigeru, born 4 February 1957) is a Japanese politician who has served as President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) since 2024. He has been a member of the House of Representatives since 1986 and has served as Minister of Defense from 2007 to 2008 and Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from 2008 to 2009, as well as being the secretary-general of the LDP from 2012 to 2014.

Ishiba was born into a political family, with his father, Jiro Ishiba, serving as Governor of Tottori Prefecture from 1958 to 1974 before later becoming the Minister for Home Affairs. After graduating from Keio University, Ishiba worked at a bank before entering politics after his father's death. Ishiba was elected to the House of Representatives in the 1986 general election as a member of the LDP at the age of 29. As a Diet member Ishiba specialized in agricultural policy and defense policy. He served as parliamentary vice minister of agriculture under the premiership of Kiichi Miyazawa but left the LDP in 1993 to join the Japan Renewal Party. After transitioning through several parties and returning to the LDP in 1997, Ishiba held various prominent positions, including Director-General of the Defense Agency under premiership of Junichiro Koizumi, Minister of Defense under premiership of Yasuo Fukuda and Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries under premiership of Tarō Asō.

Ishiba became a key figure within the LDP, running for party leadership multiple times. First in 2008 where he placed fifth, and notably against Shinzo Abe in the 2012 and 2018 elections. Despite his criticisms of LDP factionalism, he established his own faction, Suigetsukai, in 2015, aiming for leadership. After Abe's resignation, Ishiba ran in 2020 but placed third behind Yoshihide Suga. He declined to run in the 2021 election but ran for the fifth and final time in 2024 where he beat opponent Sanae Takaichi in a second round run-off, becoming the new party leader and prime minister designate, preceded by Fumio Kishida.

Ishiba has developed a reputation as a political maverick due to his willingness to criticize his party, as well as his relatively liberal stances on social issues; he supported a motion of no-confidence against Miyazawa Cabinet in 1993 and criticized Abe throughout his second premiership, despite serving in the governments of both prime ministers.

Early life

File:Zirou Ishiba 02.jpg

Shigeru Ishiba's father, Jirō, in 1956

Ishiba was born on 4 February 1957 in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, while his registered domicile was his father's hometown in the Yazu District of Tottori Prefecture. His father Jirō Ishiba was a government official then serving as Vice Minister of Construction. His mother was a teacher and a granddaughter of the Christian minister Michitomo Kanamori.

Jirō Ishiba was elected Governor of Tottori Prefecture in 1958, so the family moved to Tottori; Ishiba has no memory of living in Tokyo. Jirō Ishiba would serve as governor until 1974, and was later elected to the House of Councillors and served as Minister for Home Affairs in the Zenkō Suzuki Cabinet.

Shigeru Ishiba grew up and attended school in Tottori Prefecture. After graduating from Tottori University Junior High School, he moved away to attend Keio Senior High School, going on to study law at Keio University in Tokyo. After graduating in 1979, he began working at the Mitsui Bank. His father died in 1981. Former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka, who was a friend of his father, served as chairman of the funeral committee. Tanaka encouraged Ishiba to become a politician to carry on his father's legacy.

Political career

File:Yasuo Fukuda Cabinet 20070926.jpg

With members of the Yasuo Fukuda Cabinet (26 September 2007)

Ishiba left the bank in 1983 and began working in the secretariat of the Thursday Club, Kakuei Tanaka's faction of the Liberal Democratic Party. In the July 1986 election Ishiba ran as an LDP candidate in the Tottori at-large district and was elected to the House of Representative. At the age of 29, he was the youngest member of the House at the time.

As a junior Diet member, Ishiba specialised in agricultural policy, but the Gulf War in 1990 and a 1992 visit to North Korea spurred his interest in defense policy. He served as parliamentary vice minister of agriculture under the Miyazawa Cabinet, before defecting from the LDP in 1993, for the Japan Renewal Party. When the Japan Renewal Party merged with several other parties Ishiba became part of the New Frontier Party, but he was disillusioned by the constant struggles between Ozawa and non-Ozawa factions in the party and left in 1996. He rejoined the LDP the following year.

Ishiba was reappointed parliamentary vice minister of Agriculture under the Mori Cabinet in July 2000, but was switched to the position of deputy director general of the Defense Agency in December. He was replaced when the Koizumi Cabinet was appointed, but when Koizumi reshuffled the in September 2002 Ishiba became director general of the Defense Agency, entering the cabinet for the first time. He remained until September 2004.

Ishiba was appointed as the Minister of Defense in the cabinet of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on 26 September 2007, serving in that post until 1 August 2008. Ishiba was the second person in the cabinet of Fukuda to express belief in the existence of UFOs after Nobutaka Machimura. To that end he appeared on a Japanese TV program which featured dubbed extracts from the National Geographic Channel's Alien Invasion series in June 2012.

Following Fukuda's resignation, Ishiba stood as a candidate for the LDP presidency. In the leadership election, held on 22 September 2008, Tarō Asō won with 351 of the 527 votes; Ishiba placed fifth and last with 25 votes. In Aso's Cabinet, appointed on 24 September 2008, Ishiba was named as Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. He called for Aso to resign after the LDP's defeat in the 2009 Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election

In 2012, while the LDP was still in opposition, Ishiba again stood for the presidency of the LDP and was narrowly defeated by Shinzō Abe. He accepted the position of secretary general on 27 September 2012. Abe re-appointed him to the position after the December 2012 election in which the LDP returned to government.

He attracted considerable criticism for his statement in November 2013 that likened peaceful public protests against the new secrecy bill being introduced by his government to "acts of terrorism". He later withdrew the comment.

In the September 2014 cabinet reshuffle, Abe moved Ishiba from his position as LDP Secretary General and appointed him to a newly created office of Minister for Overcoming Population Decline and Vitalizing Local Economy. He was reported to have declined the offer of a cabinet post responsible for the government's upcoming security legislation.

In spite of having been a vocal critic of factionalism in the LDP, Ishiba launched his own faction, the Suigetsukai, on 28 September 2015, with the aim of succeeding sitting prime minister, Shinzo Abe. However, with 19 members, excluding Ishiba, it was one member short of the 20 votes required for nomination for LDP leadership.

Ishiba left cabinet in the April 2016 reshuffle, having declined the ministry of Agriculture. Ishiba challenged Abe in the 2018 LDP presidential election.

In 2020, following Shinzo Abe's resignation, Ishiba ran for the leadership of the Liberal Democratic Party, losing to Yoshihide Suga, placing third overall. Ishiba declined to run in the 2021 Liberal Democratic Party leadership election, instead endorsing Taro Kono.

Prime Minister-designate

See also: 2024 Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) presidential election

Then-LDP leader and prime minister Fumio Kishida announced on 14 August 2024 that he would not seek re-election as LDP leader in the leadership election in September, effectively resigning as prime minister, following record-low approval ratings from an ongoing slush fund scandal and previous controversies with the LDP's affiliation with the Unification Church. Ishiba, alongside Sanae Takaichi and Shinjirō Koizumi emerged as the front runners to succeed him. On the leadership election in 27 September 2024, Ishiba narrowly defeated Takaichi in a second round runoff, winning a total of 215 votes (52.57%) from 189 parliamentary members and 26 prefectural chapters, making him the new LDP leader and prime minister-designate. Ishiba's victory was described by commentators as unexpected and an upset, owing to his long history of failed leadership bids and his relative unpopularity with many LDP members of the Diet.

Political positions

Ishiba has been described as a centrist and moderate conservative. However, he is a member of the ultranationalist far-right organization Nippon Kaigi.

Social views

Ishiba has expressed support for introducing a selective dual surname system, which would allow married couples the option to retain their respective surnames. Ishiba has stated that this change should be subject to further discussion within the LDP to reach a consensus. Ishiba has expressed his support for same-sex marriage in Japan. In his book, Conservative Politician (2024), he argues that legislation should be enacted to protect LGBT rights without waiting for a Supreme Court decision.

Foreign policy

During the 2013 North Korean crisis, Ishiba stated that Japan had the right to deliver a preemptive strike against North Korea.

In his memoir written during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ishiba argued that equating the Russian invasion with a potential Chinese attack on Taiwan, stems more from emotional reactions rather than a pragmatic evaluation of the Chinese threat. Ishiba has criticized Kishida’s use of the phrase "Ukraine today may be East Asia tomorrow".

In September 2024, Ishiba claimed that the "relative decline of the U.S" might necessitate an "Asian NATO" to counter security threats from China, Russia and North Korea. While campaigning, Ishiba stated that Japan's alliance with the US should be re-balanced and called for greater Japanese oversight of American military bases in Japan.

Ishiba is a vocal supporter of Taiwanese democracy. At the same time, he has called for stronger diplomacy and engagement with China, rather than antagonism.

Military affairs

Ishiba is known as a "gunji otaku" (military geek) and has a keen interest in military matters. He is known for having a lot of expertise related to weapons systems, legal issues about defense and is also fond of building and painting models of aircraft and ships.

Ishiba has repeatedly stated that he believes that Japan needs its own equivalent of the United States Marine Corps to be able to defend its many small islands, in 2010 when he was policy chief for the LDP in opposition, and as secretary-general of the party in March 2013 after the LDP regained government.

In 2011, Ishiba backed the idea of Japan maintaining the capability of building nuclear weapons:

I don't think Japan needs to possess nuclear weapons, but it's important to maintain our commercial reactors because it would allow us to produce a nuclear warhead in a short amount of time ... It's a tacit nuclear deterrent.

In 2017, Ishiba reiterated that Japan should have the capability to build nuclear weapons, stating that "Japan should have the technology to build a nuclear weapon if it wants to do so".

Personal life

Ishiba met his wife Yoshiko when they were both students at Keio University. They got married in 1983 and have two daughters.

Ishiba is a Christian, specifically a Protestant. He was baptised at the age of 18 in the Tottori Church of the United Church of Christ in Japan. In recent years he has attended the Evangelical CBMC's National Prayer Breakfast. He also visits the Buddhist graves of his ancestors and worships at a Shinto shrine.

Ishiba is known as a fan of military vehicles, trains and Japanese idols. He made headlines when he allowed a Japan Self-Defense Forces vehicle to be displayed at the Shizuoka Hobby Show, a trade fair for plastic and radio-controlled models. When the Russian Defence Minister visited Japan, he stayed up all night assembling a plastic model of the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov.

Affiliated organizations and parliamentary associations

• Nippon Kaigi Parliamentary League (far-right lobby group)
• Abduction Affairs Council (jp:拉致議連)
• Shinseiren Diet Members' Conference (jp:神道政治連盟国会議員懇談会)
• Japan–Korea Parliamentarians' Union (jp:日韓議員連盟)
• Cross-Party Parliamentary League for Considering Human Rights Diplomacy (jp:人権外交を超党派で考える議員連盟)

External links

• 石破茂 Official Site
• 石破茂-アゴラ
• 石破茂（いしばしげる）ブログ
• Shigeru Ishiba on Twitter
• 石破 茂 on Facebook
• Shigeru Ishiba on Instagram
• イシバチャンネル's channel on YouTube

Political offices
Preceded by Gen Nakatani	Director General of Japan Defense Agency 2002–2004	Succeeded by Yoshinori Ohno
Preceded by Masahiko Kōmura	Minister of Defence 2007–2008	Succeeded by Yoshimasa Hayashi
Preceded by Seiichi Ota	Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries 2008–2009	Succeeded by Hirotaka Akamatsu
Preceded by Yoshitaka Shindo	Minister of State for Regional Revitalisation 2014–2016	Succeeded by Kozo Yamamoto
Party political offices
Preceded by Kosuke Hori	Chairperson of the Policy Research Council 2009–2011	Succeeded by Toshimitsu Motegi
Preceded by Nobuteru Ishihara	Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party 2012–2014	Succeeded by Sadakazu Tanigaki
Preceded by Fumio Kishida	President of the Liberal Democratic Party 2024–present	Incumbent