On Sunday (February 8th), Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takai led the ruling coalition to not only secure a “supermajority” in the Lower House of the election but also exceed expectations by a wide margin. Takai later thanked U.S. President Trump for endorsing her and the ruling coalition before the election and confirmed a significant post-election visit to the White House.
According to the latest statistics from Nikkei News, as of now, the ruling coalition has secured 352 seats, accounting for approximately 75% of the total seats. With 10 seats still undecided, there is room for the ruling coalition to expand its majority. This outcome has successfully established a very solid governing foundation for Takai.
Takai took to the social media platform X to express her heartfelt gratitude for Trump’s enthusiastic support.
“I look forward to visiting the White House this spring and continuing to work together with the President to further strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance,” Takai said.
“Our alliance and friendship with the United States are built on deep trust and a foundation of close, strong cooperation. The potential of the Japan-U.S. alliance is limitless,” she said. “Let us work together to ensure that this alliance continues to bring peace and prosperity to both countries and the wider region.”
Before the elections, President Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social, stating that the Japanese Lower House election was crucial, emphasizing that “the election results are of utmost importance for Japan’s future.”
He mentioned that Prime Minister Sanae Takai has proven herself to be a strong, powerful, and wise leader, a leader who truly loves Japan.
“As President of the United States, I am honored to give her (Takai) and her highly respected ruling coalition my full and complete endorsement. She will not disappoint the Japanese people!” Trump said, wishing Takai and the ruling coalition good luck in the elections.
Trump also invited Takai to visit the White House on March 19.
In an interview with Japanese media on Sunday, Takai mentioned that in the scheduled meeting with Trump in March, she will advance Japan-U.S. cooperation. She talked about Japan’s successful collection of sediments containing high concentrations of rare earths near Minami-Tori-shima and stated, “We hope the United States will also participate and accelerate the process.”
Japan is an important ally of the United States in Asia. Trump has been seeking to strengthen cooperation with Japan in critical minerals like rare earths to quickly reduce the U.S. dependence on supply chains linked to China. U.S. Treasury Secretary Benson told Fox News in an interview on Sunday, “When Japan is strong, the United States is strong in Asia as well.”