Support for the Japan Cabinet led by Sanae Takaichi, launched on the 21st, appears to be on a strong trajectory.
According to a Yomiuri Shimbun report on the 23rd, a telephone survey of 1,057 respondents conducted on the 21st–22nd found a response rate of 71% supporting the Takaichi Cabinet. This far exceeds the approval ratings for the Shigeru Ishiba Cabinet in Oct. (51%) and the Fumio Kishida Cabinet in Oct. 2021 (56%).
By contrast, those who said they do not support it stood at 18%.
The newspaper has continuously conducted approval rating surveys at the start of new cabinets since 1978, and this approval rating ranks as the fifth-highest on record. The record high is the Junichiro Koizumi Cabinet launched in Apr. 2001 (87%).
Regarding this, Yomiuri Shimbun analyzed the factors by noting, "Support among younger generations has risen significantly compared with the previous Ishiba Cabinet." In fact, in this survey, approval by age group reached 80% for those in their 30s and younger, 75% for those in their 40s–50s, and 63% for those in their 60s and older.
However, the newspaper added, "There have been quite a few cases in which cabinets with high initial approval ratings were short-lived," and "It is impossible to predict how long the high approval rating will be maintained."
Respondents cited the following policies and issues they want the Takaichi Cabinet to tackle first (multiple responses): ▲ high inflation (92%) ▲ social security, including pensions (74%) ▲ diplomacy and national security (71%).
By party support, the results were: ▲ Liberal Democratic Party 32% ▲ Sanseito 7% ▲ Constitutional Democratic Party 6% ▲ Japan Innovation Party and Democratic Party for the People 5% each ▲ Komeito 4%.