Japanese Upper House Member Resigns from Public Office Over Affair... A Setback for Kishida Cabinet

Prime Minister Kishida "Regrets Such a Situation"
Prompt Handling of Resignation Letter

Support for the cabinet led by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has fallen to its lowest level since its inception, as a ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmaker resigned from a vice-ministerial post due to an extramarital affair.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is delivering a policy speech at the Tokyo extraordinary Diet session on the 23rd.
[Photo by AFP Yonhap News]

According to the Asahi Shimbun and Yomiuri Shimbun on the 26th, LDP member Taro Yamada, a member of the House of Councillors (upper house), stepped down from his position as Parliamentary Secretary for Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology as well as for Reconstruction, which he held in the cabinet.

This followed a weekly magazine report alleging that Yamada was involved in an extramarital relationship with a woman in her 20s. He admitted to the affair.

Yamada was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and Reconstruction during the cabinet reshuffle last September. The Parliamentary Secretary is a vice-ministerial level position in the Japanese cabinet. Under Japan’s cabinet system, members of the Diet serve in government roles such as ministers, vice ministers (fukudaijin), and parliamentary secretaries (vice-ministerial level).

Prime Minister Kishida told reporters at the Prime Minister’s Official Residence on the same day, “I deeply regret that this situation has arisen,” and emphasized, “I take full responsibility for the appointment and strongly feel that I must take the lead in restoring public trust by responding with a sense of urgency.”

Kishida appointed Akiko Honda, an LDP member of the House of Councillors who previously served as Parliamentary Secretary for Health, Labour and Welfare and for the Cabinet Office, as Yamada’s successor.

The Asahi Shimbun explained that Kishida’s swift acceptance of the resignation reflects a sense of crisis within the administration. In opinion polls conducted by major Japanese media outlets, support for the Kishida cabinet this month has dropped to its lowest level since the administration began in October 2021.

In a survey conducted by the Mainichi Shimbun from the 14th to 15th targeting 1,030 respondents, support for the Kishida cabinet was only 25%. Other polls, including those by Kyodo News (32.2%) and Asahi (29%), also showed the lowest approval ratings since the cabinet’s launch.