Koichi Kato (LDP) - Political Career

Political Career

After graduating from the University of Tokyo he joined the Foreign ministry in 1963, which led to stints at the Japanese embassies in Taipei and Washington, D.C.. In 1967 he completed a Master's degree at Harvard University. After continuing his foreign service career in Hong Kong he returned to Japan as an aide in the China Affairs Bureau of the Foreign Ministry. His experience in foreign affairs resulted in fluent English and Chinese, and he remains deeply interested in relations with China.

Kato was first elected to the Diet in 1972, representing his native Yamagata and has represented that area continuously except for a brief forced resignation due to scandal in 2002. He was aligned with the Kōchikai (then called Ōhira) faction of the LDP, which produced three Japanese Prime Ministers; Masayoshi Ōhira, Zenkō Suzuki, and Kiichi Miyazawa. The power of this faction provided Kato ample opportunity for promotion, and he served in several Cabinet Positions through the 1980s and early 90s. In 1992, he was elected Secretary-General of the LDP, a time when the traditional dominance of the party was being challenged.