Japan’s first female Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, has a supportive spouse who aims to be a “stealth husband,” preparing meals while staying out of the limelight.
“Unlike in the West, it is preferable for a partner to remain out of the spotlight,” Taku Yamamoto, 73, was quoted by Fukui Television as saying on Tuesday after Takaichi became premier.
Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi was photographed with her cabinet members at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on October 21, 2025.
Yamamoto stated that it is crucial for Takaichi, who recently won the leadership of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), to “pursue her vision as Prime Minister.”
“I want to be a ‘stealth husband’ who provides solid support, ensuring that my presence does not become an obstacle,” he added, according to the Asahi newspaper, Fuji Television, and other media outlets.
Yamamoto, a former LDP lawmaker, married Takaichi in 2004, but they divorced in 2017 due to “differences in political views.”
They remarried in 2021 after Yamamoto reportedly supported Takaichi during her unsuccessful bid for LDP leadership that year. He lost his parliamentary seat in the subsequent snap election.
Takaichi’s stance on gender positions her on the right wing of the already conservative LDP.
She appointed only two other women to her cabinet, with Satsuki Katayama as finance minister and Kimi Onoda as economic security minister.
Takaichi opposes revising a 19th-century law requiring married couples to share the same surname, a rule that often results in women taking their husband’s name.
This law has caused difficulties for the couple.
During their first marriage, Takaichi adopted Yamamoto’s surname for official purposes. In their second marriage, Yamamoto took her surname.
They reside in a parliamentary housing complex in Tokyo, where Takaichi assists in caring for Yamamoto after he suffered a stroke this year and was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2024.
Media reports stated that Yamamoto first proposed to Takaichi over the phone in 2004.
He promised her “as I have a chef’s license, I’ll ensure you always have delicious food,” as reported by Jiji Press.
Takaichi, an admirer of Margaret Thatcher and a former heavy metal drummer, described him as “a rather unsociable person” whom she was initially uncomfortable with.
However, he convinced her, saying “if you’re seriously looking for a marriage partner, I’m divorced so I’ll run as a candidate,” Takaichi mentioned on her website.
Takaichi had lost her parliamentary seat in 2003 but regained it two years later, making both of them parliament members.
Since Takaichi was not skilled in cooking, Yamamoto continued to prepare meals, declaring, “the kitchen is my domain, so please don’t enter,” according to Jiji.
