Yoshihide Suga

Yoshihide Suga
菅 義偉
Official portrait of Suga
Official portrait, 2020
Prime Minister of Japan
In office
16 September 2020 – 4 October 2021
MonarchNaruhito
DeputyTarō Asō
Preceded byShinzo Abe
Succeeded byFumio Kishida
Vice President of the Liberal Democratic Party
In office
30 September 2024 – 7 October 2025
PresidentShigeru Ishiba
Secretary-GeneralHiroshi Moriyama
Preceded byTarō Asō
Succeeded byTarō Asō
President of the Liberal Democratic Party
In office
14 September 2020 – 29 September 2021
Secretary-GeneralToshihiro Nikai
Preceded byShinzo Abe
Succeeded byFumio Kishida
Chief Cabinet Secretary
In office
26 December 2012 – 16 September 2020
Prime MinisterShinzo Abe
Preceded byOsamu Fujimura
Succeeded byKatsunobu Katō
Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications
In office
26 September 2006 – 27 August 2007
Prime MinisterShinzo Abe
Preceded byHeizō Takenaka
Succeeded byHiroya Masuda
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
20 October 1996 – 23 January 2026
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byShōbun Nitta
ConstituencyKanagawa 2nd
Personal details
Born (1948-12-06) 6 December 1948 (age 77)
Yuzawa, Japan
Political partyLiberal Democratic
Spouse(s)Mariko Suga
Children3
Alma materHosei University (LLB)
Signature
WebsiteOfficial website

Yoshihide Suga (菅 義偉, Suga Yoshihide; born 6 December 1948) is a Japanese retired politician. In September 2020, he was elected Prime Minister of Japan and became President of the Liberal Democratic Party replacing Shinzo Abe. He resigned in September 2021 after negative approval ratings because of his government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan and the 2020 Summer Olympics. He was replaced by former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida. In September 2024, Suga became the Vice President of the Liberal Democratic Party.

Early life

Suga was born to a family of strawberry farmers in Ogachi (now Yuzawa), a rural area in Akita Prefecture. He moved to Tokyo and earned a Bachelor of Laws from Hosei University in 1973. He worked in a cardboard factory in Tokyo to pay his tuition.

Political career

He was the Chief Cabinet Secretary from December 2012 to September 2020 during the Shinzo Abe cabinet.

He represented the Kanagawa 2nd district in the House of Representatives, first elected in 1996. He was Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications in the cabinet of Shinzo Abe from September 2006 to August 2007.

He is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. He is a member of the far-right organization Nippon Kaigi.

Prime Minister

In August 2020, Suga announced his candidacy for the Liberal Democratic leadership election to replace Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who resigned. Suga easily won the election. He became the Prime Minister of Japan on 16 September 2020.

When Suga began his time in office he was popular, but his approval ratings quickly fell because the public did not like his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic and management of the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics. By the end of Suga's premiership he was recording some of the lowest approval ratings in Japanese history. He was not doing well in polling numbers of the 2021 LDP leadership election and upcoming 2021 general election.

Suga announced on 3 September 2021 that he would not seek reelection as President of the LDP, ending his term as Prime Minister after just one year. He left office on 4 October and was replaced by Fumio Kishida.

Retirement

Suga continued to represent the Kanagawa 2nd district constituency after stepping down from his role as prime minister. On 16 January 2026, it was reported that Suga would not run in an snap election that was likely to be called by then-prime minister Sanae Takaichi, instead deciding to retire from public office. He officially announced his retirement to reporters in Yokohama the next day. Suga said that he had considered the timing of his retirement since turning 70, and would give way to the next generation.

Personal life

Suga is married and has three sons. His wife, Mariko, is the sister of one of his former co-workers in the office of Hikosaburo Okonogi.

References

  1. ↑ Hashimoto, Goro (3 July 2019). "Suga Yoshihide: Japan's Next Prime Minister?". nippon.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  2. ↑ Ryall, Julian (5 May 2019). "Who will lead Japan after Abe? Washington visit offers new clues". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 27 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  3. ↑ Shigeta, Shunsuke (12 May 2019). "How Abe's deputy Suga grew to power broker and possible successor". Nikkei Asian Review. Archived from the original on 31 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  4. ↑ "The Key Government Post of Chief Cabinet Secretary". nippon.com. 2019-05-27. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  5. ↑ "Japan succession race kicks off, starring Abe's deputies and rival". Nikkei Asian Review. 2020-08-29. Retrieved 2020-08-29.
  6. ↑ Sieg, Linda (29 August 2020). "In race to replace Japan's Abe, loyalist Suga emerges as strong contender". Reuters. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  7. ↑ Sugiyama, Satoshi (14 September 2020). "Yoshihide Suga set to become Japan's prime minister after winning LDP election". The Japan Times. Archived from the original on 14 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  8. ↑ "Japan's Prime Minister to Step Aside After Just a Year in Office". The New York Times. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  9. ↑ "Japan PM Suga says won't run in ruling party leadership race-NHK". Reuters. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  10. ↑ "Japan's Prime Minister to Step Aside After Just a Year in Office". The New York Times. 3 September 2021.
  11. ↑ "Japan's former Prime Minister Suga decides not to run in next Lower House race". NHK World-Japan. 16 January 2026. Retrieved 16 January 2026.
  12. ↑ "Ex-Japan PM Suga not to run in election, will retire from politics: sources". Kyodo News. 16 January 2026. Retrieved 16 January 2026.
  13. ↑ "77-yr-old ex-PM Suga retiring to pass baton to younger Japanese lawmakers". Kyodo News. 17 January 2026. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  14. ↑ "Ex-PM Suga Announces Retirement as Lawmaker". Jiji Press. 17 January 2026. Archived from the original on 19 January 2026. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  15. ↑ "プロフィール". 内閣官房長官・衆議院議員 菅（すが）義偉 ホームページ (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 1 September 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  16. ↑ "菅官房長官 ひと目ぼれで結婚…令和おじさんの意外すぎる半生 | 女性自身". WEB女性自身 (in Japanese). 11 April 2019. Archived from the original on 6 May 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2020.

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