Takaichi Opts for Stability in First Cabinet Reshuffle

New Faces at Top of Administration

Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae opted for stability in her first cabinet reshuffle on September 17, 2026, retaining key figures including Chief Cabinet Secretary Kihara Minoru and Finance Minister Katayama Satsuki. Her 2025 Liberal Democratic Party leadership rivals Motegi Toshimitsu and Koizumi Shinjirō also stay on as foreign minister and defense minister, respectively. However, Hayashi Yoshimasa, who was another 2025 leadership contender, is replaced as minister of internal affairs and communications by Fujii Hisayuki, who enters the cabinet for the first time.

One notable change is the appointment of the first minister representing the LDP’s coalition partner Nippon Ishin no Kai. Nakatsuka Hiroshi becomes minister for regulatory reform.

The full list of cabinet members is as follows. Ages are as of September 17, 2026.

Prime minister

Takaichi Sanae (65), LDP, House of Representatives (Nara)

Minister of internal affairs and communications (first cabinet post)

Fujii Hisayuki (55), LDP, House of Representatives (Hyōgo)

Minister of justice

Yamashita Takashi (61), LDP, House of Representatives (Okayama)

Minister for foreign affairs (unchanged)

Motegi Toshimitsu (70), LDP, House of Representatives (Tochigi)

Minister of finance, minister of state for financial services (unchanged)

Katayama Satsuki (67), LDP, House of Councillors (proportional representation)

Minister of education, culture, sports, science, and technology (first cabinet post)

Seki Yoshihiro (61), LDP, House of Representatives (Hyōgo)

Minister of health, labor, and welfare (unchanged)

Ueno Ken’ichirō (61), LDP, House of Representatives (Shiga)

Minister of agriculture, forestry, and fisheries (first cabinet post)

Yana Kazuo (47), LDP, House of Representatives (proportional representation)

Minister of economy, trade, and industry (unchanged)

Akazawa Ryōsei (65), LDP, House of Representatives (Tottori)

Minister of land, infrastructure, transport, and tourism (first cabinet post)

Ibayashi Tatsunori (50), LDP, House of Representatives (Shizuoka)

Minister of the environment (first cabinet post)

Sasagawa Hiroshi (60), LDP, House of Representatives (Gunma)

Minister of defense (unchanged)

Koizumi Shinjirō (45), LDP, House of Representatives (Kanagawa)

Chief cabinet secretary, minister in charge of the abduction issue (unchanged)

Kihara Minoru (57), LDP, House of Representatives (Kumamoto)

Minister for digital transformation (first cabinet post)

Furukawa Toshiharu (63), LDP, House of Councillors (Saitama)

Minister for reconstruction

Hosono Gōshi (55), LDP, House of Representatives (Shizuoka)

Chair of the National Public Safety Commission

Hanashi Yasuhiro (66), LDP, House of Representatives (Ibaraki)

Minister for regulatory reform (first cabinet post)

Nakatsuka Hiroshi (70), Ishin, House of Representatives (Osaka)

Minister for growth strategy (unchanged)

Kiuchi Minoru (61), LDP, House of Representatives (Shizuoka)

Minister for economic security, minister in charge of foreign resident issues (unchanged)

Onoda Kimi (43), LDP, House of Councillors (Okayama)

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo: Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae, at front center, poses for a commemorative photo with the members of her reshuffled cabinet at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on September 17, 2026. © Jiji)