Chief Cabinet Secretary

The chief cabinet secretary of Japan(内閣官房長官, Naikaku-kanbō-chōkan) is a member of the cabinet and is the leader and chief executive 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. The secretary is a statutory member of the National Security Council, and is appointed by the emperor upon the nomination by the prime minister. The chief cabinet secretary is the second in line of succession to the prime minister, and 1st if the office of the deputy prime minister is unoccupied.[citation needed]

History

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 内閣書記官長(naikaku-shokikan-chō). The modern position was created on May 3, 1947, shortly after the passage of the Constitution of Japan, 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, who served in the position under Tanaka Giichi. Since then, eight other former chief cabinet secretaries have become prime ministers, most recently Shinzō Abe, Yasuo Fukuda, and Yoshihide Suga.

Yoshihide Suga, who later became Prime Minister of Japan, served as chief cabinet secretary under Shinzo Abe 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 Minoru Kihara, who took office on October 21, 2025.

List of secretaries-general of the cabinet

Shōwa era

• Seiji Tsukamoto (December 25, 1926 – April 20, 1927)
• Ichirō Hatoyama (April 20, 1927 – July 2, 1929) - later became prime minister in the mid-1950s.
• Fujiya Suzuki (July 2, 1929 – April 14, 1931)
• Takukichi Kawasaki (April 14, 1931 – December 13, 1931)
• 4 other holders (December 13, 1931 – October 19, 1934)
• Shigeru Yoshida (October 20, 1934 – May 11, 1935) - not to be confused with PM Shigeru Yoshida.
• Takekai Shirane (May 12, 1935 – March 9, 1936)
• 2 other holders (March 9, 1936 – June 4, 1937)
• Akira Kazami (June 4, 1937 – January 4, 1939)
• Harumichi Tanabe (January 4, 1939 – April 7, 1939)
• 3 other holders (April 7, 1939 – July 22, 1940)
• Kenji Tomita (July 22, 1940 – October 18, 1941)
• Naoki Hoshino (October 18, 1941 – July 22, 1944)
• 4 other holders (July 22, 1944 – 7 April 1945)
• Hisatsune Sakomizu (April 7, 1945 – August 15, 1945)
• Taketora Ogata (August, 15 1945 – October 5, 1945)
• Daizaburō Tsugita (October 9, 1945 – January 13, 1946)
• Wataru Narahashi (January 13, 1946 – May 22, 1946)
• Jōji Hayashi (May 22, 1946 – May 2, 1947)

List of chief cabinet secretaries

Shōwa era

Liberal (1945) Socialist Democratic (1947) Democratic Liberal Liberal (1950) Democratic (1954) Liberal Democratic

Heisei era

Liberal Democratic Japan New Party New Party Sakigake Japan Renewal Party Socialist Democratic

Reiwa era

Liberal Democratic

See also

• White House Chief of Staff
• Chief Presidential Secretary

Notes