Tarō Asō

Tarō Asō (麻生 太郎, Asō Tarō; born 20 September 1940) is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2008 to 2009. A member of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), he also served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance from 2012 to 2021. He was the longest-serving Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance in Japanese history, having previously served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2007 and as Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications from 2003 to 2005. He leads the Shikōkai faction within the LDP.

Asō was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1979. He served in numerous ministerial roles before becoming Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in 2008, having also held that role temporarily in 2007. He was later elected LDP President in September 2008, becoming prime minister the same month. He led the LDP to the worst election result in its history a year later, marking only the second time in post-war Japan that a governing party had lost re-election, and resigned as the President of the party immediately afterwards. After the LDP returned to government following the 2012 election under Shinzo Abe, Asō was appointed to the Cabinet as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, retaining those roles when Yoshihide Suga replaced Abe in 2020. After leaving cabinet, he's served as vice president of the LDP under Fumio Kishida and as senior advisor to the LDP under Shigeru Ishiba. He is a noted power broker inside the party, leading the Shikōkai.

Asō has been attached to a number of controversies in his career. He conceded in 2008 that his family had benefitted from forced labor during World War II, although he has refused to apologize for it. Asō also had a reputation for political gaffes and controversial remarks.