Fumio Kishida

Early life and education

Fumio Kishida was born in Shibuya, Tokyo, on 29 July 1957. His father, Fumitake Kishida, was a government official in the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and director of the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency. Since the Kishida family was from Hiroshima, the family returned there every summer. Many members of the Kishida family had died in the atomic bombing by the United States and Fumio grew up hearing stories from the atomic bomb survivors. Both his father Fumitake and grandfather Masaki Kishida were former politicians who were members of the House of Representatives. Former Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yoichi Miyazawa is his cousin and former prime minister Kiichi Miyazawa is a distant relative.

Kishida first went to P.S. 020 John Bowne elementary school in Flushing, Queens and then P.S. 013 Clement C. Moore elementary school in Elmhurst, Queens, New York, because his father was posted to a job in the U.S. at the time. He also attended Kōjimachi Elementary School and Kōjimachi Junior High School. Kishida graduated from Kaisei Academy, where he played on the baseball team. Following several rejections from the University of Tokyo, Kishida studied law at Waseda University and graduated in 1982. At Waseda, he was friends with future politician Takeshi Iwaya.

Political career

After working at now-defunct Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan and then as a secretary to Fumitake Kishida, a member of the House of Representatives in 1987, Kishida was elected to the House of Representatives in the 1993 general election, representing the Hiroshima 1st district. In November 2000, when then Prime Minister Yoshirō Mori's popularity was declining due to a number of gaffes, Kōchikai Chairman Koichi Kato and Kinmirai Seiji Kenkyūkai Chairman Taku Yamasaki attempted to oppose the Cabinet or pass the motion in absentia by means of a motion of no-confidence in the Cabinet proposed by the opposition party, which is known as Kato's Rebellion (加藤の乱). At that time, Kishida signed a petition in support of Kato and was absent during the vote. However, after the Kato Rebellion failed, he joined the anti-Kato Horiuchi faction (新財政研究会).

In 2001, Kishida served as Vice Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in the first Koizumi Cabinet. In the first Abe Reform Cabinet, he served as Minister of State for Special Missions (内閣府特命担当大臣, in charge of Okinawa and northern countermeasures, national life, re-inauguration, science and technology policy, and regulatory reform). In Yasuo Fukuda Cabinet, he continued to serve as Minister of State for Special Missions (in charge of Okinawa and Northern countermeasures, national life, science and technology policy, and regulatory reform).

Kishida served as Minister of Okinawa Affairs from 2007 to 2008, firstly in the Abe Cabinet and later in the Fukuda cabinet. He was appointed state minister in charge of consumer affairs and food safety in the cabinet of then prime minister Yasuo Fukuda in 2008. Kishida was also state minister in charge of science and technology in the Fukuda cabinet. Kishida was close to Makoto Koga, leader of the Kōchikai faction, one of the oldest inside the LDP, and assumed control of it in October 2012 after Makoto Koga announced his retirement from politics.

Abe government

Following the LDP's victory in the 2012 general election, Kishida was named foreign minister in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe on 26 December 2012. He became the longest-serving foreign minister in postwar history, surpassing Abe's father Shintaro Abe. He helped to arrange U.S. president Barack Obama's historic visit to Hiroshima in May 2016, and gained attention in 2017 when he appeared alongside comedian Piko Taro to promote a United Nations program. He was not in favor of the appointment of Toshihiro Nikai as LDP secretary-general by Abe in 2016 against the wishes of Kishida's own faction, which was seen as an attempt at blocking generational change inside the LDP.

In 2017, Kishida left the Cabinet to take over the chairmanship of the LDP Policy Research Council, a position traditionally seen as a stepping stone to leadership of the party. He sought this position in order to improve his chances to succeed Abe, as the foreign minister post had relatively little influence within the party. On 28 July 2017, after Tomomi Inada resigned, he briefly served as minister of defense.

Kishida considered running in the 2018 LDP presidential election, but he was persuaded by Abe not to run, with a suggestion that Abe would later support Kishida as his successor. By mid-2020, several senior LDP lawmakers had shifted their support from Kishida to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga. Deputy Prime Minister Tarō Asō was also popular for sending stimulus payments to households during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kishida ran in the 2020 LDP presidential election but lost out to Suga, who became prime minister; Kishida was not offered a position in the Suga cabinet, although his faction obtained two cabinet seats.

Premiership (2021–2024)

Following Yoshihide Suga's announcement on 3 September 2021 that he would resign, following low approval ratings (at one point below 30%), and a new wave of COVID-19 infections, Kishida and Taro Kono of Shikōkai faction were in the lead to replace him. Suga's decision to not seek re-election as head of the LDP triggered another leadership election in September, just a little more than a year after the previous election in 2020. Throughout the race, Kono was heavily favored to win as he remained in first place among various LDP polls, and he received endorsements by Suga and others.

On 29 September 2021, Kishida defeated Taro Kono in a runoff vote to become the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and replaced outgoing party leader Yoshihide Suga. He received a total of 257 votes (60.19%), from 249 parliamentary members and eight rank-and-file members, to become Japan's next prime minister.

2021 general election and Second cabinet

The First Kishida cabinet took office on 4 October 2021 and consisted of 21 members, including 13 who joined the Cabinet for the first time while also including 2 veterans, Toshimitsu Motegi and Nobuo Kishi, who retained their respective posts from the previous cabinet under Suga; He also became the first LDP prime minister of Kōchikai origin in nearly three decades, since Kiichi Miyazawa resigned in 1993.

On the same day, Kishida announced he would call a general election for 31 October 2021. Kishida gave his first speech as prime minister on 8 October 2021, vowing to fight and end the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan as well as announcing measures to counter the perceived threats by China and North Korea. Following the 2021 Japanese general election, Kishida maintained the premiership, although the LDP lost 25 seats. He formed the Second Kishida Cabinet by replacing Toshimitsu Motegi with Yoshimasa Hayashi as the foreign minister; Motegi became the party's secretary-general.

Domestic policy

Kishida's tenure saw a reversal of decades-long deflationary economic policies, with Japan experiencing its highest wage growth in 30 years, driven by record wage increases achieved through annual wage negotiations. In December 2022, Kishida instructed his government to increase "national security-related spending" to 2 percent of Japan's GDP, while increasing the defence budget from 5.4 trillion yen ($40 billion) in 2022 to 8.9 trillion yen ($66 billion) by 2027, up 65%. This would lead to a spending a total of around 43 trillion yen ($321 billion) between 2023 and 2027, up 56% from 2019 to 2023.

Amidst the relaxation of COVD-19 measures in Spring 2022, Kishida resumed the admission of foreign workers into Japan, but stopped short of reforming the nation's immigration policy. The government's minimum wage target of ¥1,500 by the mid-2030s was questioned by economists, who argued that certain macroeconomic factors could prevent the goal from being reached. Kishida appointed Kazuo Ueda as Governor of the Bank of Japan in April 2023, who stated he planned to continue the ultra easy monetary policy introduced by the outgoing Governor Haruhiko Kuroda. A few weeks before his next cabinet reshuffle, Kishida stated he wanted to raise the hourly minimum wage in Japan to about ¥1,500 ($10.29) by 2030. In 2023, it was predicted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that Germany would eclipse Japan as the world's Number 3 economy.

Kishida set child care as his government's priority for the year 2023. He emphasized the potential consequences of child poverty and declining birth rates, and stated that his administration would increase monetary child benefits given to parents. Kishida announced a plan to double the country's children-related budget by June 2023, and instructed government ministers in the administration to outline child care plans by the end of March 2023.

Kishida established the Children and Families Agency on 1 April 2023 to serve as a new administrative body within the Cabinet Office to tackle issues relating to child welfare. This includes nursery access, child allowances, the fight against child poverty, child abuse and suicide prevention, cyberbullying, and support for children with disabilities, all of which had been handled by different government agencies. On 1 June, the Japanese government set aside ¥3.5 trillion annually for child care.

Japan's child poverty rate declined to 11.5 percent by 2022. UNICEF ranked Japan eighth among 39 developed countries (OECD) in tackling child poverty in 2023. The media's response to Kishida's child care policies has been mixed, with The Guardian's Justin McCurry criticizing them as ineffective for not raising Japan's birth rate.

Foreign policy

In keeping with the Free and Open Indo-Pacific policy, Kishida has visited Quad nations such as India and Australia to ensure the status quo in the region remains unchanged. Kishida has also visited nations in Europe, along with Canada and the United States, with Japan hosting the 49th G7 summit in May 2023. Kishida has condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and visited Kyiv in a historic trip. In November 2022, he accused China of violating Japan's sovereignty in the East China Sea and criticized the persecution of Uyghurs in China of the Uyghur minority in China's Xinjiang province. Kishida supported Bangladesh's efforts to repatriate Rohingya refugees to Myanmar. Kishida attended the 2022 and the 2023 NATO summits in Spain and Lithuania. In October 2023, Kishida condemned Hamas' actions during the Gaza war and expressed his support to Israel and its right to self-defense. In April 2024, he also condemned the Iranian strikes in Israel.

Early in his tenure as PM, Kishida was seen as dovish on foreign policy and lukewarm about revising Japan's pacifist constitution. Following the political philosophy of his own faction, Kishida pledged a "humane diplomacy" based on the Peace Constitution, the Japan–U.S. alliance, and the Self-Defense Forces and that he will seek to strengthen Japan–U.S. relations and to promote the free and open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) strategy while counterbalancing Chinese political assertiveness and military presence in the region. Regarding Chinese influence over Taiwan and Hong Kong, Kishida has stated that the Taiwan Strait may be the "next major diplomatic problem" following "China's clampdown on Hong Kong" and that Japan should seek more cooperation with Taiwan.

In May 2022, Kishida pledged to increase Japan's military spending with the goal of reaching the NATO target level of 2% of GDP. Following this resolution by the cabinet, Kishida began a tour of members of the Group of Seven in January 2023. Kishida first met with President Emmanuel Macron of France on 9 January 2023. The following day, he met with Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni and agreed on a "strategic partnership". On 11 January 2023, Kishida met with British prime minister Rishi Sunak in London, where the two signed a joint defence pact. The following day, Kishida met with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau in Ottawa to discuss trade and other issues. On 13 January, Kishida visited President Joe Biden of the United States in Washington, D.C.; the previous day Japan's Foreign Minister and Defense Minister met with their American counterparts, where they affirmed the Japan-United States alliance remained unchanged.

Assassination of Shinzo Abe and cabinet reshuffle

After the assassination of Shinzo Abe on 8 July 2022, Kishida condemned the assassination, but refused to suspend political campaigning so as to demonstrate that democracy would not be impeded by violence. He later blamed insufficient police protection for allowing the murder to occur. Because of media reports on the ties between the LDP and the Unification Church, a Korean cult accused of scamming Japanese followers (including the suspect's mother) out of much of their wealth, Kishida reshuffled his Cabinet on 10 August 2022, which included removing Abe's brother, Nobuo Kishi, from the role of minister of defense. Taro Kono was made the Minister of Digital Affairs. While the majority of members of the LDP, including Shinzo Abe and Nobuo Kishi, were related to the church to various degrees, there were no evidences of Kishida having any direct tie with the church or any of its affiliated entities.

It was reported in 1 September issue of Shūkan Bunshun that Mineo Nakayama, the president of a Kumamoto circle for backing Kishida's bid for the premiership, was also a chairperson of a Unification Church-affiliated group which was advocating for building the Japan-Korea Undersea Tunnel. Both Kishida and Nakayama denied any knowledge of the tunnel advocacy group being related to the Unification Church. On 4 December 2023, Kishida denied having knowledge about the involvement of Newt Gingrich and Masayoshi Kajikuri with the Unification Church during a meeting in October 2019, arranged by Abe. Gingrich, the former US House Speaker, is also known as a strong supporter of the Unification Church. On the other hand, Kajikuri is the chairman of numerous organizations associated with the church. Kajikuri was known to have invited Abe to a 2021 online conference held by one of the fronts of the church, Universal Peace Federation, and that particular appearance is cited as one of the major reasons that drove a church victim, Tetsuya Yamagami, into assassinating Abe in July 2022.

Attempted assassination

On 15 April 2023, a man threw a cylindrical explosive device at Kishida shortly before he was due to make a campaign speech in Wakayama. The device exploded after a short delay during which Kishida was evacuated from the scene unharmed. Ryuji Kimura, a 24-year-old man from Hyogo Prefecture, was arrested at the scene, with cameras showing him holding what appeared to be a second cylindrical object as he was tackled to the ground. The incident took place as Kishida was talking with a candidate of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party just before his scheduled speech. Kishida immediately left by car after the incident and continued with his stump speech elsewhere in the city. He stated at an event later in the day that "elections are a bedrock of democracy," adding that it was extremely unforgivable that such violence took place. Kimura was indicted by Wakayama prosecutors on 7 September 2023 for attempted murder, among other charges and was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment on 19 February 2025.

LDP funds scandal

After news leaked in December of a slush fund scandal involving several Abe faction ministers and senior party leaders, including Yasutoshi Nishimura and Kōichi Hagiuda, Kishida sacked several of his own ministers involved in the scandal, including Nishimura along with Hirokazu Matsuno and a group of other Abe faction members. Along with this, further members of the faction resigned from their posts in the House of Representatives. It is believed that the Abe faction hid away over 500 million yen worth of money over five years. Kishida pledged to "work like a ball of fire" to regain public trust after news broke. Kishida also announced his resignation as the head of Kōchikai and announced he will leave the faction while he serves as premier. In mid-January, it was revealed that Kishida's own faction, the Kōchikai, failed to declare 30 million yen in fundraising from parties over a three-year period. Kishida told the media it was a result of "clerical errors". Kishida is not expected to face prosecution for the error.

Despite public belief hitting 91% that the LDP and Kishida would not undertake any change, the prime minister made an announcement at which he pledged to dissolve his own faction and announced support for other factions of the LDP to be dissolved as well. The Abe faction followed shortly over. However, Kishida's pledge did not gain party-wide support, Shikōkai, the third largest-grouping inside the party led by former prime minister Tarō Asō, and Heisei Kenkyūkai, led by LDP General Secretary Toshimitsu Motegi, defied Kishida's will and did not disband. Both Aso and Motegi stated their intention to turn both of their factions into policy groups in late January. Kishida has also come under fire for Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Masahito Moriyama ties to the Unification Church, the same group which dogged Kishida's approvals early on in his term. Moriyama was unable to recall his ties to the Church and if he had received funding from them before the 2021 general election. Despite calls to fire him, Kishida has refused and Moriyama survived the no confidence vote on 20 February 2024. Kishida and his LDP lost all three seats up for election in the 2024 Japan by-elections, which were previously held by LDP members or LDP affiliated independents. He denied he would step down after results came in.

Resignation

On 14 August 2024, Kishida announced that he would no longer seek second term as president of the LDP in elections due in September, which would also effectively end his tenure as prime minister. Kishida said that he was withdrawing in order for the party to have an "open contest to promote debate" and "to show the people that the LDP is changing". In the LDP leadership election Kishida initially endorsed Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, then in the second round he whipped votes for Shigeru Ishiba, who defeated Sanae Takaichi to become the next party leader and prime minister.

Public approval

In early November 2023, a Jiji Press survey showed his cabinet's approval rating falling to 21.3%, the lowest since Tarō Asō in 2008. It further fell to 17.1% in December. Despite his attempts at reform during the slush fund scandal, polls report his cabinet's approval rating as low as 25%, with only 1% of people polled highly approving of his response, and 4% approving highly of his reforms. A Mainichi Shimbun poll in mid-February highlighted his approval rating at 14%, only .6% better than Tarō Asō shortly before the landside DPJ victory in 2009, which also served as the worst modern recorded approval rating. Jiji displayed his approval rating at 16.6%, the lowest tabulated for him from Jiji, with a clear majority stating dissatisfaction for the punishments distributed due to the slush fund scandal.

Post-premiership (2024–present)

Kishida retired from the position of prime minister and was succeeded by Shigeru Ishiba after the 2024 Liberal Democratic Party presidential election on 1 October 2024.

Political views

From 2012 to 2023, Kishida served as the leader of the moderate Kōchikai faction, and has been described as a moderate conservative, as well as a centrist politician. However, he is a member of the ultranationalist and far-right organization Nippon Kaigi. In the Diet, he is president of the parliamentary league for Public Interest Capitalism, as well as the parliamentary league to Create a New Capitalism, and is also a founding member of the "Realization of Selective Surnames System" Diet group which has the aim of allowing married couples to keep different surnames if they wish.

Economic policy

During the 2021 LDP presidential race, Kishida called for Japan to strive for a new form of capitalism to reduce income disparity, saying neoliberalism and deregulation had widened economic gaps in society. In a parliamentary session on 20 February 2022 he reiterated that the benefits of growth should not belong to a limited group adding that "[c]apitalism isn't sustainable unless it is something that belongs to all stakeholders".

Foreign relations

In 2017, while serving as foreign minister, Kishida pressured China to push North Korea towards denuclearization. During the race for the leadership of the LDP, Kishida also addressed the issue of Japanese abductees by North Korea and supported a summit between Japan and North Korea to end the issue. Kishida also took a stronger stance than other contenders regarding China and North Korea, saying that Japan should strengthen its defenses, while at the same time recognizing that there is a clash between authoritarianism and democracy in the region, especially with regard to the status of Taiwan. In May 2022, Kishida requested that the German government remove Statue of Peace in Berlin, a variant of the Statue of Peace, in Berlin. The request caused considerable controversy in South Korea.

Nuclear policy

Kishida is in favor of retaining nuclear power technology, which he says should be considered as a clean energy option, while also calling for the establishment of a $90.7 billion university fund to further stimulate science and promotion of renewable energy. Being a representative from Hiroshima, Kishida has consistently advocated for Japanese diplomacy to promote nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament within the framework of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). In the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kishida rejected former prime minister Shinzo Abe's proposal for Japan to consider hosting U.S. nuclear weapons as a deterrent, calling it "unacceptable" given the country's stance of maintaining the three non-nuclear principles. Kishida's government continued to reject participating in the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons framework and discussions.

Social issues

Kishida stated support for discussions toward allowing married Japanese couples to choose between unified single surnames or separate last names, while on the topic of same-sex marriage Kishida has stated he has not come to support it, saying instead that the public's opinion should be understood before the Diet decides. In 2023 he stated that Japan must "be extremely careful in considering the matter as it could affect the structure of family life in Japan". In the Diet's budget committee on 28 February 2023, responding to an opposition lawmaker question, he stated that "I don't think disallowing same-sex couples to marry is unjust discrimination by the state", repeating his position that a same-sex marriage ban "is not unconstitutional" and denying that he is discriminatory adding "I have never stated I'm against it". His comment sparked criticism from opposition lawmakers and LGBTQ activists, who questioned whether Kishida was backpedaling from an earlier meeting that month with LGBTQ representatives to show consideration to ultra-conservatives in his party who oppose sexual diversity.

Personal life

In 1988, Kishida married Yuko Kishida, the daughter of a Japanese real estate investor, in an arranged marriage. The couple has three sons. In one presentation, Yuko was featured in the LDP messaging immediately after he became the de facto Prime Minister-designate. He is a fan of the manga series Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and had pledged to financially support the Japanese animation industry during his premiership. He is also a fan of the Hiroshima Toyo Carp baseball team.

In May 2023, Kishida dismissed his eldest son, Shōtarō Kishida, from his role as policy secretary, effective 1 June 2023, for misuse of government resources. Photos had surfaced of Shotaro hosting parties at the prime minister's official residence and of him posing as the prime minister. Chief Cabinet Secretary, Hirokazu Matsuno, called the actions "inappropriate". On 12 June 2025, Kishida received the silver YouTube Creator Awards plaque for surpassing 100,000 subscribers on YouTube. He celebrated by recording an unboxing video, where he showcased the plaque.

Honours

Netherlands:

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau (29 October 2014).

Spain:

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic (31 March 2017)

United States:

Profile in Courage Award (29 October 2023)

Paraguay:

Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit (3 May 2024)

Ukraine:

First Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise (23 August 2024)