The is a member of the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

and is the leader and

chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the Cabinet Secretariat of Japan. The Chief Cabinet Secretary coordinates the policies of ministries and agencies in the executive branch, and also serves as the government's

press secretary A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage. Dut ...

. The secretary is a statutory member of the

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a na ...

, and is appointed by the

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

upon the nomination by the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

. The Chief Cabinet Secretary is the first in line of succession to the

, unless the office of the

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...

is occupied. In March 1879, the precursor of the position, the Secretary-General of the Cabinet, was created. From 1885, it was included as part of the cabinet system, and the position was known in Japanese as . The modern position was created on May 3, 1947, shortly after the passage of the

Constitution of Japan The Constitution of Japan (Shinjitai: , Kyūjitai: , Hepburn: ) is the constitution of Japan and the supreme law in the state. Written primarily by American civilian officials working under the Allied occupation of Japan, the constitution r ...

, and elevated to ministerial status in 1966. Since 1947, the office of Chief Cabinet Secretary has been regarded as a stepping stone to the post of Prime Minister. The first Chief Cabinet Secretary to become Prime Minister was

Ichirō Hatoyama was a Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan from 1954 to 1956. A conservative, Hatoyama helped oversee the 1955 merger of the Liberal Party and the Democratic Party to create the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), of which Hatoyam ...

, who served in the position under

Tanaka Giichi Baron was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, politician, cabinet minister, and the Prime Minister of Japan from 1927 to 1929. Early life and military career Tanaka was born as the third son of a low-ranking ''samurai'' family in the se ...

. Since then, eight other former Chief Cabinet Secretaries have become Prime Ministers, most recently

Shinzō Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 20 ...

Yasuo Fukuda is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2007 to 2008. He was previously the longest-serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history, serving in that role from 2000 to 2004 under Prime Ministers Yoshirō M ...

, and

Yoshihide Suga is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2020 to 2021. He had served as Chief Cabinet Secretary during the second administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe fro ...

, who later became

Prime Minister of Japan The prime minister of Japan (Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of Stat ...

, served as Chief Cabinet Secretary under

Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 20 ...

for nearly eight years, making him the longest-serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in history, having overtaken the previous record of 1,289 days in office set by Fukuda on July 7, 2016. The current Chief Cabinet Secretary is

Hirokazu Matsuno is a Japanese politician who currently serves as the Chief Cabinet Secretary since October 2021. He is serving in the House of Representatives as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. Career A native of Kisarazu, Chiba and graduate of Wa ...

, who took office on 4 October 2021. Cabinet_Office_Government_Buildings

List of Secretary-Generals of the Cabinet

Shōwa Era

*Tsukamoto Kiyoji (December 25, 1926 – April 20, 1927) *

(April 20, 1927 – July 2, 1929) - later became prime minister in the mid-1950s. *6 other holders (July 3, 1929 – October 19, 1934) *Shigeru Yoshida (October 20, 1934 – May 11, 1935) - not to be confused with PM

Shigeru Yoshida (22 September 1878 – 20 October 1967) was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954. Yoshida was one of the longest-serving Japanese prime ministers, and is the third-long ...

. *14 other holders (May 12, 1935 – April 6, 1945) *

Hisatsune Sakomizu was a Japanese government official and politician before, during and after World War II. He is well known for serving as the chief secretary to Prime Minister Kantarō Suzuki's Cabinet (April–August 1945). He was ordered by Suzuki to inves ...

(7 April 1945 – 15 August 1945) *vacant (August 16, 1945 – October 9, 1945) *Daizaburō Tsugita (October 9, 1945 – January 13, 1946) *Wataru Narahashi (January 13, 1946 – May 22, 1946) *Jyōji Hayashi (May 22, 1946 – May 2, 1947)

List of Secretary-Generals of the Cabinet

Shōwa Era

List of Chief Cabinet Secretaries

Shōwa Era

Heisei Era

Reiwa Era

See also

Notes

References