Admirer of Margaret Thatcher beat her more moderate rival Shinjiro Koizumi to become leader of the Liberal Democratic party
Japan is about to get its first female prime minister, after Sanae Takaichi was elected as leader of the governing Liberal Democratic party [LDP] – a victory that should see her installed as the country’s new leader in the middle of the month.
Takaichi, a right-winger who has voiced admiration for Margaret Thatcher in her quest to build a “strong and prosperous” Japan on the international stage, beat her moderate rival, Shinjiro Koizumi, in a runoff election at the LDP headquarters in Tokyo on Saturday.