Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba attends a news conference at the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on July 21, 2025. Philip Fong/Pool via Getty Images
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announced on Sept. 7 that he is stepping down following two election losses.
Ishiba first took office in October 2024. For weeks, he has rejected calls for his resignation from conservative members of his own party, suggesting that doing so would leave a political vacuum in Japan while it faces critical challenges at home and abroad.
