List of prime ministers of Japan

The prime minister of Japan is the country's head of government and the leader of the Cabinet. This is a list of prime ministers of Japan, from when the first Japanese prime minister (in the modern sense), Itō Hirobumi, took office in 1885, until the present day. 32 prime ministers under the Meiji Constitution had a mandate from the Emperor. The "electoral mandates" shown are for the House of Representatives, the lower house of the Imperial Diet, which was not constitutionally guaranteed to have any influence on the appointment of the prime minister.

The prime minister under the Constitution of Japan is designated from among the members of the National Diet, and appointed by the Emperor after being nominated by the National Diet. The premiership of Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni, who was prime minister for fifty-four days in 1945, was the shortest in Japanese history. Shinzo Abe served the longest, with eight years over two non-consecutive periods. The incumbent and first female prime minister is Sanae Takaichi, who assumed the office on 21 October 2025.

From 1871 to 1885 The office of daijō-daijin (太政大臣, chancellor of the realm) was the equivalent of what would become the office of prime minister. It was an ancient role which had been discontinued in the 18th century and was briefly revived during the Meiji era.

Daijō-daijin (chancellor of the realm) +List of daijō-daijin (chancellor of the realm) (1871–1885) Portrait Daijō-daijin Term of office Mandate Party Government Emperor Start End Duration Sanjō Sanetomi 1871 1885 Independent Meiji

The office of Daijō-daijin was abolished in December 1885 with the appointment of Itō Hirobumi in the new position of prime minister of Japan (内閣総理大臣, Naikaku Sōri-Daijin).

Since 1885 Prime ministers

+List of prime ministers of Japan since 1885 Portrait Prime minister Term of office Mandate Party Government Emperor Ref Start End Duration Itō Hirobumi 1885 1888 — Independent 1. Itō I Meiji Kuroda Kiyotaka 1888 1889 — Military 2. Kuroda Sanjō Sanetomi 1889 1889 — Independent Sanjō caretaker Yamagata Aritomo 1889 1891 — Military 3. Yamagata I 1890 Matsukata Masayoshi 1891 1892 — Independent 4. Matsukata I 1892 Itō Hirobumi 1892 1896 — Independent 5. Itō II 1894 1894 Kuroda Kiyotaka 1896 1896 — Military Matsukata Masayoshi 1896 1898 — Independent 6. Matsukata II Itō Hirobumi 1898 1898 — Independent 7. Itō III 1898 Ōkuma Shigenobu 1898 1898 — Kenseitō 8. Ōkuma I 1898 Yamagata Aritomo 1898 1900 — Military 9. Yamagata II Itō Hirobumi 1900 1901 — Rikken Seiyūkai 10. Itō IV Saionji Kinmochi 1901 1901 — Rikken Seiyūkai Katsura Tarō 1901 1906 — Military 11. Katsura I 1902 1903 1904 Saionji Kinmochi 1906 1908 — Rikken Seiyūkai 12. Saionji I 1908 Katsura Tarō 1908 1911 — Military 13. Katsura II Saionji Kinmochi 1911 1912 — Rikken Seiyūkai 14. Saionji II 1912 Taishō Katsura Tarō 1912 1913 — Independent 15. Katsura III Yamamoto Gonnohyōe 1913 1914 — Military 16. Yamamoto I Ōkuma Shigenobu 1914 1916 — Rikken Dōshikai 17. Ōkuma II 1915 Terauchi Masatake 1916 1918 — Military 18. Terauchi 1917 Hara Takashi 1918 1921 — Rikken Seiyūkai 19. Hara 1920 Uchida Kōsai 1921 1921 — Independent Takahashi Korekiyo 1921 1922 — Rikken Seiyūkai 20. Takahashi Katō Tomosaburō 1922 1923 — Military 21. Katō To. Uchida Kōsai 1923 1923 — Independent Yamamoto Gonnohyōe 1923 1924 — Military 22. Yamamoto II Kiyoura Keigo 1924 1924 — Independent 23. Kiyoura Katō Takaaki 1924 1926 1924 Kenseikai 24. Katō Ta. Wakatsuki Reijirō 1926 1926 — Kenseikai 1926 1927 — 25. Wakatsuki I Shōwa Tanaka Giichi 1927 1929 — Rikken Seiyūkai 26. Tanaka G. 1928 Hamaguchi Osachi 1929 1931 — Rikken Minseitō 27. Hamaguchi 1930 Kijūrō Shidehara 1930 1931 — Independent Wakatsuki Reijirō 1931 1931 — Rikken Minseitō 28. Wakatsuki II Inukai Tsuyoshi 1931 1932 — Rikken Seiyūkai 29. Inukai 1932 Takahashi Korekiyo 1932 1932 — Rikken Seiyūkai Saitō Makoto 1932 1934 — Military 30. Saitō Okada Keisuke 1934 1936 — Military 31. Okada 1936 Fumio Gotō 1936 1936 — Independent Kōki Hirota 1936 1937 — Independent 32. Hirota Senjūrō Hayashi 1937 1937 — Military 33. Hayashi 1937 Fumimaro Konoe 1937 1939 — Independent 34. Konoe I Kiichirō Hiranuma 1939 1939 — Independent 35. Hiranuma Nobuyuki Abe 1939 1940 — Military 36. N. Abe Mitsumasa Yonai 1940 1940 — Military 37. Yonai Fumimaro Konoe 1940 1941 — Independent 38. Konoe II Taisei Yokusankai 39. Konoe III Hideki Tojo 1941 1944 1942 Taisei Yokusankai 40. Tōjō Kuniaki Koiso 1944 1945 — Taisei Yokusankai 41. Koiso Kantarō Suzuki 1945 1945 — Taisei Yokusankai 42. K. Suzuki Independent Naruhiko Higashikuni 1945 1945 — Imperial Family 43. Higashikuni Kijūrō Shidehara 1945 1946 — Independent 44. Shidehara Shigeru Yoshida 1946 1947 1946 Liberal 45. Yoshida I Tetsu Katayama 1947 1948 1947 Socialist 46. Katayama Hitoshi Ashida 1948 1948 — Democratic 47. Ashida Shigeru Yoshida 1948 1954 — Democratic Liberal 48. Yoshida II 1949 49. Yoshida III Liberal 1952 50. Yoshida IV 1953 51. Yoshida V Ichirō Hatoyama 1954 1956 — Japan Democratic 52. Hatoyama I. I 1955 53. Hatoyama I. II — Liberal Democratic 54. Hatoyama I. III Tanzan Ishibashi 1956 1957 — Liberal Democratic 55. Ishibashi Nobusuke Kishi 1957 1960 — Liberal Democratic 56. Kishi I 1958 57. Kishi II Hayato Ikeda 1960 1964 — Liberal Democratic 58. Ikeda I 1960 59. Ikeda II 1963 60. Ikeda III Eisaku Satō 1964 1972 — Liberal Democratic 61. Satō I 1967 62. Satō II 1969 63. Satō III Kakuei Tanaka 1972 1974 — Liberal Democratic 64. Tanaka K. I 1972 65. Tanaka K. II Takeo Miki 1974 1976 — Liberal Democratic 66. Miki Takeo Fukuda 1976 1978 1976 Liberal Democratic 67. Fukuda T. Masayoshi Ōhira 1978 1980 — Liberal Democratic 68. Ōhira I 1979 69. Ōhira II Masayoshi Ito 1980 1980 — Liberal Democratic Zenkō Suzuki 1980 1982 1980 Liberal Democratic 70. Suzuki Z. Yasuhiro Nakasone 1982 1987 — Liberal Democratic 71. Nakasone I 1983 72. Nakasone II 1986 73. Nakasone III Noboru Takeshita 1987 1989 — Liberal Democratic 74. Takeshita Akihito(Heisei) Sōsuke Uno 1989 1989 — Liberal Democratic 75. Uno Toshiki Kaifu 1989 1991 — Liberal Democratic 76. Kaifu I 1990 77. Kaifu II Kiichi Miyazawa 1991 1993 — Liberal Democratic 78. Miyazawa Morihiro Hosokawa 1993 1994 1993 New 79. Hosokawa Tsutomu Hata 1994 1994 — Renewal 80. Hata Tomiichi Murayama 1994 1996 — Socialist 81. Murayama Ryutaro Hashimoto 1996 1998 — Liberal Democratic 82. Hashimoto I 1996 83. Hashimoto II Keizō Obuchi 1998 2000 — Liberal Democratic 84. Obuchi Mikio Aoki 2000 2000 — Liberal Democratic Yoshirō Mori 2000 2001 — Liberal Democratic 85. Mori I 2000 86. Mori II Junichiro Koizumi 2001 2006 — Liberal Democratic 87. Koizumi I 2003 88. Koizumi II 2005 89. Koizumi III Shinzo Abe 2006 2007 — Liberal Democratic 90. Abe S. I Yasuo Fukuda 2007 2008 — Liberal Democratic 91. Fukuda Y. Tarō Asō 2008 2009 — Liberal Democratic 92. Asō Yukio Hatoyama 2009 2010 2009 Democratic 93. Hatoyama Y. Naoto Kan 2010 2011 — Democratic 94. Kan Yoshihiko Noda 2011 2012 — Democratic 95. Noda Shinzo Abe 2012 2020 2012 Liberal Democratic 96. Abe S. II 2014 97. Abe S. III 2017 98. Abe S. IV Naruhito(Reiwa) Yoshihide Suga 2020 2021 — Liberal Democratic 99. Suga Fumio Kishida 2021 2024 — Liberal Democratic 100. Kishida I 2021 101. Kishida II Shigeru Ishiba 2024 2025 — Liberal Democratic 102. Ishiba I 2024 103. Ishiba II Sanae Takaichi 2025 Incumbent — Liberal Democratic 104. Takaichi I 2026 105. Takaichi II

Living former prime ministers

As of , there are eleven living former Prime Ministers of Japan. The most recent death of a former prime minister was that of Tomiichi Murayama (1994–1996) on 17 October 2025. He died at age 101, having become a centenarian on 3 March 2024.村山富市元首相 きょう100歳の誕生日「日本がどこまでも平和な国であるように」 FNN (Japanese) 3 March 2024

Timeline

Relations between Japanese prime ministers RelationsJapanese prime ministers brothers 1. Nobusuke Kishi (older) and Eisaku Satō (younger) grandfathers and grandsons 2. Fumimaro Konoe and Morihiro Hosokawa3. Nobusuke Kishi and Shinzo Abe4. Shigeru Yoshida and Tarō Asō5. Ichirō Hatoyama and Yukio Hatoyama great-uncle and great-nephew 6. Eisaku Satō and Shinzo Abe father and son 7. Takeo Fukuda and Yasuo Fukuda father-in-law and son-in-law 8. Zenkō Suzuki and Tarō Asō

See also Deputy Prime Minister of Japan List of Japanese cabinets List of prime ministers of Japan by education List of prime ministers of Japan by home prefecture List of prime ministers of Japan by time in office

Notes

References

External links Previous Prime Ministers | Prime Minister's Office of Japan