Seiko Noda

Seiko Noda (野田 聖子) is a Japanese politician who served as Minister-in-charge of Measures against Declining Birthrate from October 2021 to August 2022.

Her grandfather, Uichi Noda (1903–1997) was a Ministry of Finance Vice Minister, and later became an elected member of the lower house serving as Economic Planning Agency Chief Secretary and Minister of Construction.

She was born Seiko Shima, but before entering politics she was officially adopted and took her grandfather's name.

While enrolled at Futaba Academy (雙葉学園) Secondary School in the Tokyo suburb of Denenchofu.

She moved to the United States and attended Jonesville High School in Jonesville, Michigan for one year and graduated.

In 1983, she graduated from the Sophia University (上智大学 jōchi daigaku) Foreign Language Department with a major in Comparative cultural studies, and took a job with the Imperial Hotel.

In 1987, she campaigned for a Gifu Prefectural Assembly seat and won.

With interest she watched the battle occurring at that time over the introduction of sales tax between the LDP and Socialist Party (the Socialist Party doubled their number of seats in the 1989 elections).

She was impressed by the sudden popularity of the women's voice of the Socialist Party's Takako Doi, and gained a sense of urgency and self-awareness as a politician, thus deciding to take aim at national issues.

In the 39th lower house general elections of 1990, she was unable to gain endorsement from the LDP, and lost in the former Gifu 1st District.

In the 40th lower house general elections of 1993, she ran again under the slogan "An LDP lady in the lower house" and won (at the time there were no female LDP lower house members).

Following the 1993 elections, the Hosokawa Cabinet took leadership and the LDP had slipped to the minority, so she began her lower house career as a member of the opposition party.

In the second Hashimoto Cabinet she was inaugurated as Vice Minister of Posts (November 7, 1996).

In the Obuchi Cabinet formed on July 30, 1998, she was selected as Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, at 37 becoming the youngest post-war cabinet minister ever (a title formerly held by Kakuei Tanaka who was selected at age 39).

After becoming minister, Prime Minister Obuchi called her "the future candidate for female Prime Minister".

She also gained the attention of LDP Secretaries General Hiromu Nonaka and Makoto Koga.

In 1999, she became LDP Diet Countermeasure Committee Vice-chair and House Steering Committee Program Director.

As the program director position often goes to a promising young Diet member, and being the first woman to be selected, she became well known.

In 2000, she served as LDP Policy Research Council Deputy Chairman, and First Vice-Secretary General.

In 2001, she married Yōsuke Tsuruho (鶴保庸介 b. 1967) of the Conservative Party, and instead of a reception held a "New Year's Get-Together" in January 2002 at the Imperial Hotel (their common-law marriage dissolved in 2007).

She puts first priority on children's issues, and is also actively involved in issues such as prohibition of child prostitution/pornography and support for the developmentally disabled (a member of the non-partisan "Association of Diet Members That Value Support for the Developmentally Disabled", which established the Support for Developmentally Disabled Act on November 24, 2001).

Her interests include reading and watching movies, karaoke, and using the computer.

As a lover of Japanese sake, she serves as President of the "Sake-Loving Female Diet Members Club" (Secretary-General Yuko Obuchi), and an advisor to the Sake Manufacturers' Association.

Her mail magazine is called "Catherine's Report," Catherine being the name of her French Bulldog.

It is said that she got the dog during the difficult times of her infertility treatment on the advice of Diet member Seiko Hashimoto.

In a turning point of her 10-year career as Diet member, she quit the Kōmura faction in December 2003.

It is thought that this was to break free from the restraints of the faction and widen her potential support base.

She was re-elected for the fifth time in the September 2005 snap election.

They separated in 2007.

She and her husband put their common-law marriage to practical use by leading the movement of the "joint male and female-planned society".

She is a proponent of the right of women to keep their family name after marriage.

This is despite her husband taking a position against the idea at the time the law enabling it was established.

Noda was appointed as State Minister in charge of Consumer Affairs by Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda on August 1, 2008.

In the Cabinet of Prime Minister Taro Aso, appointed on September 24, 2008, Noda retained her post.

On 5 September 2021, Noda announced her intentions to run for the Liberal Democratic leadership in the 2021 election.

On 4 October 2021, she was appointed to the new Cabinet by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

A member of the Liberal Democratic Party, she previously served as Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications from 2017 to 2018 under Shinzo Abe.

Noda also serves in the House of Representatives, serving her fifth term for the 1st District of Gifu Prefecture.

She is a self-described conservative and was a candidate in the 2021 Liberal Democratic Party Leadership Election, however she was eliminated in a run-off, placing fourth in the first round.

She was born in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka.