February 18, 2026

Sanae Takaichi, president of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), was elected as the country's 105th prime minister on Wednesday by lawmakers in parliament.

At a special Diet session convened on the day, the lower house and the upper house held a prime ministerial appointment vote, respectively.

In the House of Representatives vote, Takaichi secured 354 votes in the first round, defeating head of the main opposition Centrist Reform Alliance (CRA) Junya Ogawa with 50 votes and other rival candidates.

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https://news.cgtn.com/news/2026-02-18/news-1KRwW7Ktg1G/p.html