Japan is tired of Prime Minister Kishida, a man who tries too hard

Fumio Kishida’s knack for associating with controversial policies has turned him into one of the most unpopular leaders of the past two decades.

Gearoid Reidy

Dec 14, 2023 – 6.49am

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Fumio Kishida is in trouble. Japan’s prime minister is dealing with the lowest approval ratings since his Liberal Democratic Party returned to power in 2012; support rates so low that they’ve typically destroyed other leaders.

In one recent favourability survey of current and former leaders, Kishida not only ranked below Yasuo Fukuda, the most forgettable of the many LDP heads of the 2000s, but also Yoshihiko Noda; the last head of the doomed opposition Democratic Party of Japan administration, whose signature policy achievement was pushing through a widely hated consumption tax hike.

Bloomberg Opinion