The Feminist Conservative Paradox

“Right-wing Sanae Takaichi set to be Japan’s First female premier”, read Reuters headlines on October 3. I always pause when “right-wing” appears beside a trailblazing feminist. How does she reconcile her identity with the hyper-masculinity that is often inherent in far-right agendas? Yet she is not alone. Women are leading conservative political movements throughout Europe and now Asia.

Takaichi is not your typical far-right politician, especially for Japan. According to the BBC, she was once a heavy metal drummer, a scuba diver and car enthusiast. Yet the same dive now pushes her to defend conservative values. Takaishi is just another woman who broke barriers using the very strength they now use to preserve tradition. 

Her path to politics began amid US-Japan trade friction in the 1980s. In order to understand more, she went to Washington and worked for Democrat Patricia Schroeder, a US Congresswoman, who was outspoken against Japan. There she saw how little US politicians knew about Japan and how her country was often grouped together with China and Korea by American politicians. She joined Japanese politics to defend Japan against these shallow impressions, first unsuccessfully as an independent and eventually as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (“LDP”, the long dominant Japanese conservative party). There she built a reputation as one of its most conservative voices. After two failed attempts to win her party’s leadership role in 2020, she finally won and became the first female Prime Minister of Japan on October 21, 2025. 

From here, Takaichi’s rise might be seen as part of a global shift, a far-right wave riding from West to East. In the US, Donald Trump rose to power with the backing of the Christian right, focusing on nationalism, abortion, and gender identity, reshaping the conversation on women's rights (The Guardian, April 2025). The nationalist wave rode to Europe, on the back of over a decade of immigration influx. Interestingly, women became its most visible faces by connecting Muslim immigration and its threats to women’s rights. Marine Le Pen of Rassemblement National, Alice Weidel of Alternative for Germany (AfD), and Giorgia Meloni, leader of Brothers of Italy, are among the most prominent female leaders on the far right in Europe. Le Pen in France and Meloni in Italy lead nationalist parties that argue immigration and globalization threaten traditional values. According to The Progressive Report (2024), female far-right leaders such as Le Pen and Meloni position “women’s rights as the ‘gatekeepers’ of European societies and their identities as liberal, egalitarian nations… feminism is conveyed as a concluded project – as long as ‘the other’ is kept at a distance.”

But this is not exactly what is going on. In Japan, immigration is not a primary voter concern. There were about 3.4 million foreign residents living in Japan, or 2.7 percent of the total population of Japan. In contrast, France’s immigrant population represented 10.7 percent of its population in 2023 (TKG Immigration Consulting; Bureau of Japan; Le Monde). Europe’s immigration problems are not Japan’s. Japan’s nationalism stems less from border control than from fears of cultural erosion and demographic decline. 

Science Norway offers another explanation of female success in Europe’s far-right. Professor Ragnhild Louise Murriaas, of the University of Bergen notes that “Many of these parties are relatively young and less established than centre-right parties. That can give women greater opportunities to reach the top”. This helps explain Girogia Meloni’s rise within the Brothers of Italy (founded in 2012) and the rise of Alice Weidel within the AfD (founded in 2013). But Takaishi’’s party was founded in 1955 and according to Reuters it has been the dominant party in Japan since WWII, making her an exception to this theory.

Takaichi’s LDP party was facing constituents angry about dramatic inflation and opposition groups who promised economic growth and stimulus, after the price of rice nearly doubled last June, per Reuters. In July, the LDP lost their majority in both houses of their legislator for the first time in history, making the LDP prime minister’s position precarious. Norway Science quotes Professor Jana Birke Belschner, who notes that in these cases women may be chosen deliberately. “When a party is struggling a female leader can help… change the party's public image. It can also be a strategy to appeal to female voters," she says. This theory fits the LDP situation. The party was facing mounting public frustration and they turned to a female leader to attract voters. 

Although her femininity is a symbol of change, her agenda will not bring any tangible social change to the party platform. According to The Big Take podcast from Bloomberg News, Takaichi stands by Japan’s tradition of married couples selecting one last name for the family. In Japan, this is typically seen as anti-feminist because it means women cannot maintain a separate maiden name. She also has no plans to legalize same-sex marriage in Japan, the only G7 country where it is not yet legal.  

These positions complicate her feminist image. While her rise challenges Japan’s hierarchy symbolically, her policies reinforce the same patriarchal structures that have limited women’s authority.   

But she is more than just a symbol. Unlike largely ceremonial roles, like a vice president or monarch, the Prime Minister of Japan holds real executive power. According to The Morning Edition podcast by SMH and the Age, she was selected because she has a profile suited to address key issues facing Japan, aside from being a woman. She can speak English, which is seen as critical to be able to go “toe-to-toe” with President Trump. According to The Observatory of Economic Complexity October 10, 2025 dataset, the US is Japan's top trading partner. If they face tough tariffs on exports to the US, it would have negative implications for the Japanese economy. On top of that, she will need to get a security commitment from Trump, who has been inconsistent with former allies such as Ukraine. As discussed on The Big Take Asia Podcast (October 2025), Japan is within the nuclear missile range of enemies with such capabilities, including North Korea, China, and Russia. 

Takaichi is also the disciple of Abe Shinzo, Japan’s longest serving Prime Minister. He was assassinated in 2020, but his legacy is revered for jolting Japan’s economy after the 2011 nuclear disaster and a recession. As his disciple, Takaichi represents aggressive economic reform (TIME, 2022). She styles herself after Margaret Thatcher, calling herself “The Iron Lady of the East”. Thatcher is famous for “lurching” the UK economy in the direction of economic growth, no matter what her male colleagues thought and her results are still felt in the UK today. However, Japan is a much more conservative, slow-moving culture, so making dramatic reforms like Thatcher will be a true challenge. 

No matter the ideology, electing the first female Prime Minister of Japan is a historic moment for women around the globe. It signals a slow opening of Japan’s male-dominated political system. Women only hold about 10% of parliamentary seats, the lowest among the G7 countries (The Japan Times, March 2025).  It also changes ideals about what conservative leadership looks like. I am hopeful that visibility matters and representation will precede reform, even in the most traditional systems. But her story is a reminder that women’s rise to power does not always translate into progress for women, the paradox that defines this new era of female nationalism.

Sources: 

AP News, “Japan’s LDP set to choose new prime minister after Kishida’s resignation”
BBC News, “Sanae Takaichi: Japan’s ‘Iron Lady’ aims to become first female leader”
BBC News, “Who is Sanae Takaichi, Japan’s potential first female leader?”
East Asia Forum, “LDP’s historic electoral defeat upends Japan’s politics” (July 27, 2025)
EBSCO Research Starters, “Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)”
The Guardian, “How the Christian right is turning the U.S. into Gilead – and exporting it to Europe” (April 5, 2025)
The Japan Times, “Japan’s share of female lawmakers remains low despite record number of women elected” (March 7, 2025)
Le Monde (English Edition), “In France, the reasons behind immigration are becoming more diverse” (August 30, 2024)
Reuters, “Japan’s ruling party to pick new leader, hoping to revive fortunes” (October 2025)
Reuters, “What’s behind the surge in Japan’s rice prices?” (June 16, 2025)
Science Norway, “Not a coincidence that so many far-right parties have female leaders”
Time Magazine, “Abenomics and the legacy of Shinzo Abe”
Big Take Asia Podcast, “The Rise of Japan’s ‘Iron Lady’ and Its Political Shift to the Right” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart)
The Morning Edition Podcast, “Japan poised to elect first female leader – ‘Iron Lady’ Sanae Takaichi” (Apple Podcasts)
OEC (Observatory of Economic Complexity), “Japan Country Profile”
Statistics Bureau of Japan, “Population Estimates of Japan, 2023”
TKG Immigration Office, “3.4 million foreign residents in Japan (2023)” (March 26, 2024)
Trading Economics, “United States Imports by Country”