Naoto Kan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Naoto Kan
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菅 直人
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Official portrait, 2007
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| Prime Minister of Japan | |
| In office 8 June 2010 – 2 September 2011 |
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| Monarch | Akihito |
| Preceded by | Yukio Hatoyama |
| Succeeded by | Yoshihiko Noda |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 6 January 2010 – 8 June 2010 |
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| Prime Minister | Yukio Hatoyama |
| Preceded by | Hirohisa Fujii |
| Succeeded by | Yoshihiko Noda |
| Deputy Prime Minister of Japan | |
| In office 16 September 2009 – 8 June 2010 |
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| Prime Minister | Yukio Hatoyama |
| Preceded by | Wataru Kubo (1996) |
| Succeeded by | Katsuya Okada (2012) |
| Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy | |
| In office 16 September 2009 – 8 June 2010 |
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| Prime Minister | Yukio Hatoyama |
| Preceded by | Yoshimasa Hayashi |
| Succeeded by | Satoshi Arai |
| Minister of State in charge of National Strategy | |
| In office 16 September 2009 – 6 January 2010 |
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| Prime Minister | Yukio Hatoyama |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Yoshito Sengoku |
| Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy | |
| In office 16 September 2009 – 6 January 2010 |
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| Prime Minister | Yukio Hatoyama |
| Preceded by | Seiko Noda |
| Succeeded by | Tatsuo Kawabata |
| Minister of Health and Welfare | |
| In office 11 January 1996 – 7 November 1996 |
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| Prime Minister | Ryutaro Hashimoto |
| Preceded by | Chūryō Morii |
| Succeeded by | Junichiro Koizumi |
| Member of the House of Representatives from Tokyo |
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| In office 22 October 2017 – 9 October 2024 |
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| Preceded by | Masatada Tsuchiya |
| Constituency | 18th district |
| In office 16 December 2012 – 22 October 2017 |
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| Preceded by | Hidehiro Mitani |
| Succeeded by | Shunsuke Ito |
| Constituency | Tokyo PR Block |
| In office 20 October 1996 – 16 December 2012 |
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| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Masatada Tsuchiya |
| Constituency | 18th district |
| In office 17 July 1980 – 20 October 1996 |
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| Preceded by | Kiyoshi Ōno |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| Constituency | 7th district |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 10 October 1946 Ube, Yamaguchi, Empire of Japan |
| Political party | CDP |
| Other political affiliations |
SDF (before 1993) NPS (1993–1996) DPJ(96) (1996–1998) DPJ(98) (1998–2016) DP (2016–2017) |
| Spouse |
Nobuko Kan
(m. 1970) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Tokyo Institute of Technology |
| Website | Official website: http://www.n-kan.jp/ |
Naoto Kan (菅 直人, Kan Naoto, born 10 October 1946) is a Japanese former politician. He served as the Prime Minister of Japan and leader of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). His time as Prime Minister was from June 2010 to September 2011.
Kan was the first Prime Minister since 2006 to stay in office for more than a year. Many leaders before him either resigned early or lost elections. He announced his resignation on August 26, 2011. Yoshihiko Noda was then chosen as his replacement. In 2012, the United Nations asked Kan to join a special group. This group worked on plans for global development after 2015.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Naoto Kan was born in Ube, Yamaguchi, Japan, on October 10, 1946. His father, Hisao Kan, was a director at a glass company. Naoto Kan studied at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. He graduated in 1970. In 1971, he became a licensed benrishi, which is like a patent agent.
Political Career in Japan
After college, Kan worked at a patent office for four years. He was very active in local community groups. He also helped with election campaigns for Fusae Ichikawa, a famous women's rights activist.
Kan tried to win a seat in the Japanese parliament several times. He finally won a seat in the lower house in 1980. He was part of the Socialist Democratic Federation. Later, he joined the New Party Sakigake. In 1996, he became the Minister of Health and Welfare. This was under Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto.
While in this role, Kan became very popular. He openly admitted that the government was responsible for the spread of contaminated blood in the 1980s. He also apologized directly to the victims. People praised his honest actions.
In September 1996, Kan helped start the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). He founded it with Yukio Hatoyama. Kan later became the leader of the DPJ. In 2003, the DPJ joined with another party. They formed a larger opposition party for the upcoming election. Kan was presented as the main alternative to the Prime Minister at the time, Junichiro Koizumi.
In 2004, Kan faced an issue with his pension records. He resigned as party leader. However, it was later found that the problem was due to an administrative error. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare apologized for the mistake.
Kan believes that Japan's military, called the Japan Self-Defense Forces, should play a bigger role in global affairs.
Serving as Finance Minister (2010)
On January 6, 2010, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama chose Kan to be the new Finance Minister. He also served as Deputy Prime Minister. Kan said his main goal was to help Japan's economy grow. He even suggested a specific exchange rate for the Japanese yen against the US dollar. This was unusual for a finance minister.
Prime Minister of Japan (2010–2011)
On June 2, 2010, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama announced he would resign. Kan then ran to become the new leader of the Democratic Party of Japan. He won the election on June 4, 2010.
Later that day, the Japanese parliament, called the Diet, chose Kan as the new Prime Minister. On June 8, Emperor Akihito officially appointed him as the 94th Prime Minister of Japan. His new government, called the Kan Cabinet, was formed that same day.
Kan's popularity dropped after he suggested increasing the sales tax. This idea was not popular with many people, including some in his own party. The tax proposal was quickly changed. This issue was partly blamed for his party losing its majority in the parliament's upper house in July 2010. This meant his government had to work with smaller parties to pass new laws.
In August 2010, Kan apologized to South Korea. This was for Japan's past actions 100 years after the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty.
In September, a Chinese fishing boat collided with Japanese patrol boats near the Senkaku Islands. These islands are claimed by both Japan and China. China protested the arrest of the boat captain. The captain was released later, but the event made relations between Japan and China difficult.
Kan's government also took action to help Japan's economy. They bought U.S. dollars to make the Japanese yen weaker. This helped Japanese companies that export goods. This action was popular with businesses and the public. In November, Kan strongly supported South Korea after North Korea attacked one of its islands.
Resignation from Office
Kan announced he would resign on August 10, 2011. He officially resigned on August 26, 2011, after two important bills were passed. These bills were about government debt and renewable energy. Yoshihiko Noda, who was the finance minister, was chosen as the new leader of the DPJ. He then became the new Prime Minister.
Life After Being Prime Minister
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After leaving the Prime Minister's office, Kan remained active in politics. In 2012, he supported a lawyer named Kenji Utsunomiya in the election for Governor of Tokyo. Utsunomiya shared Kan's views against nuclear power.
Kan lost his direct seat in parliament in the 2012 and 2014 general elections. However, he kept a seat through a system called proportional representation. In 2017, he joined the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. In that election, he won back his direct seat in parliament.
In 2023, Kan announced that he would not run for parliament again. His term ended in October 2024. He said he would still be involved in politics in some way.
Personal Life and Hobbies
Naoto Kan married his wife, Nobuko Kan, in 1970. They have two sons, Gentarō and Shinjirō. Gentarō is a social activist. He has run for parliament before and was elected to the Musashino City Council in 2023. Shinjirō is a veterinarian and works at an animal hospital in Tokyo.
Kan is sometimes called "Ira-Kan," which means "Fretful Kan," because he is known for having a short temper. His hobbies include playing the board games Go and shogi. He also enjoys origami, the art of paper folding. In 1973, Kan even invented a machine to help calculate points in the game of mahjong and applied for a patent for it.
