Abe Becomes Japan’s 3rd-Longest-Serving Prime Minister

May 29, 2018

Tokyo- Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday replaced Junichiro Koizumi as the top Japanese government leader who served the third-longest consecutive term in the country's history.

Abe's second tenure reached the 1,981st straight day, surpassing Koizumi's stint of 1,980 days.

After seeing his first tenure end in 366 days in September 2007, Abe returned to power in December 2012 and steadily extended his days in office.

If he stays on, Abe's consecutive term in office will be the second longest on Feb. 21, 2019, by surpassing former Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida's 2,248 days and rank first on Aug. 24, 2020, by overtaking former Prime Minister Eisaku Sato's 2,798 days.

But improving his record further may not to be an easy task for Abe, with the outlook of his administration becoming increasingly uncertain partly due to a series of favoritism allegations against it.

The biggest challenge for now will be whether Abe can win the next presidential election of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, set for autumn this year. He aims to consolidate support from major factions in the party in order to win his third term as LDP president.

With his first tenure combined, Abe's days in office as prime minister are now the fifth longest in the history of Japan's constitutional politics. Jiji Press