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◆ THE IDEOLOGY ATLAS

Japan — Takaichi government (2025–present)

Japan

Basis for the estimate: LDP government under Sanae Takaichi (won February 2026 election): defense build-up, economic security, conservative social policy.

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Official system and how it worked in practice

Official systemParliamentary constitutional monarchy
In practiceLiberal democracy
electoral democracy plus strong rule of law, judicial and legislative checks, and protected individual rights

“In practice” is V-Dem’s Regimes of the World classification for Japan, 2025–2025, from expert-coded data (V-Dem Regimes of the World (v2x_regime), V-Dem dataset v16, March 2026). V-Dem codes each country as it stood at the end of each year, so the first and last years can reflect the previous or next government. The official system is the constitutional form during the period.

Political placement

Map dimensionScore (0–100)PositionReading
Economic
Collective / planned ↔ Market
59near the center
Social
Progressive ↔ Traditional
69toward traditional
Authority
Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian
45near the center
National identity
Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist
82toward nationalist
Foreign policy
Non-intervention ↔ Intervention
66toward intervention
All nine underlying dimensions
DimensionScoreReading
Economic ownership
Collective ownership ↔ Private ownership
67toward private ownership
Civil liberties
Civil liberty ↔ State restrictions
55near the center
National identity
Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist
82toward nationalist
Social and cultural values
Progressive ↔ Traditionalist
75toward traditionalist
Political governance
Democratic ↔ Autocratic
35near the center
Equality and hierarchy
Egalitarian ↔ Hierarchical
69toward hierarchical
Economic management
Free market ↔ State planning
54near the center
Military intervention
Non-intervention ↔ Intervention
66toward intervention
Religion and government
Secular state ↔ Religious authority
55near the center

Country and government scores interpret the policies of a specific government or period; they are not an authoritative ranking of countries, and official constitutional structures can differ from how power is exercised in practice. How scores are made.

Key positions (estimated)

StatementPositionBasis
The means of production should ultimately be owned collectively.Strongly disagreesestimated
Opposition parties should be free to compete in elections.Strongly agreesestimated
A national religious authority should have the power to veto legislation.Strongly disagreesestimated
Central economic planning is preferable to decentralized market decisions.Strongly disagreesestimated
National borders should become less important over time.Strongly disagreesestimated
People should be free to criticize the government without fear of legal punishment.Agreesestimated
Traditional values should guide what society considers right and wrong.Strongly agreesestimated
Foreign wars should be avoided unless national territory is directly threatened.Strongly disagreesestimated
Class distinctions should gradually disappear.Strongly disagreesestimated
Courts should be independent even when they obstruct elected leaders.Strongly agreesestimated

Closest ideologies

Right-Wing Populism88% similar positionNeoconservatism88% similar positionPaternalistic Conservatism87% similar positionConservative Populism87% similar positionOne-Nation Conservatism86% similar position

Most similar governments

Italy — Meloni government (2022–present)94% similarUnited States — Trump administration (2017–2021)91% similarSouth Korea — Government (2022–2025)90% similarFrance — De Gaulle presidency (1959–1969)88% similarUnited States — Trump administration (2025–present)87% similar

Sources

Last reviewed October 11, 2026.