Government and power in Japan

Who leads Japan, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system.

Who leads Japan?

• Head of state: The Emperor of Japan (Emperor)
• Head of government: Takaichi Sanae (Prime Minister of Japan)
• Foreign minister: Motegi Toshimitsu (Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan)

Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.

Governance scores

The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.

Voice and accountability

Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.

Political stability and absence of violence

Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.

Government effectiveness

Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.

Regulatory quality

Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.

Rule of law

Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.

Control of corruption

Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.

Official bodies that hold power in Japan

Government

• Prime Minister's Office of Japan
  Statements, press conferences and policy announcements of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Parliament

• House of Representatives
  Bills, members, plenary and committee information of the lower house of the National Diet.
• House of Councillors
  Bills, members, voting records and session information of the upper house of the National Diet.
• Diet Record Search (National Diet Library)
  Searchable minutes of plenary and committee sessions of both houses of the Diet since 1947.

Elections

• Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications – Elections
  Results of national elections, voter turnout figures and political funds reports.

Courts

• Supreme Court of Japan
  Judgments of the Supreme Court and lower courts, court statistics and information on the judiciary.

Public audit

• Board of Audit of Japan
  The annual audit report on the settlement of state accounts and audits of government agencies.

Access to information

• Information Disclosure and Personal Information Protection Review Board
  Reports on review requests referred by government bodies about information disclosure and personal information decisions.

Public contracts

• Government Electronic Procurement System (p-portal)
  Central government tender notices, procurement information and electronic bidding.

Laws and the official gazette

• e-Gov Laws and Regulations
  Current texts of the Constitution, Acts, Cabinet Orders and ministerial ordinances.
• Japanese Law Translation (Ministry of Justice)
  English translations of Japanese laws and regulations, with a legal-term dictionary.
• Official Gazette (Kanpō)
  The official gazette publishing promulgated laws, Cabinet Orders and public notices.

Government below the national level

• Prefectures (47: 1 to, 1 do, 2 fu, 43 ken): Governor (chiji) and prefectural assembly both directly elected for four years
• Municipalities (about 1,720 shi, cho, son) and Tokyo's 23 special wards: Mayor and municipal assembly both directly elected for four years

How local power works in Japan

Places in Japan

• All 47 prefectures
• The 262 largest cities
• Official statistics for Japan

Sources

• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Central government spending (GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 808094019f50…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)

Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.