Wataru Takeshita | |
|---|---|
竹下 亘 | |
 Takeshita in 2014 | |
| Minister for Reconstruction | |
| In office 3 September 2014 – 7 October 2015 | |
| Prime Minister | Shinzo Abe |
| Preceded by | Takumi Nemoto |
| Succeeded by | Tsuyoshi Takagi |
| Member of theHouse of Representatives | |
| In office 25 June 2000 – 17 September 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Noboru Takeshita |
| Succeeded by | Yasuhiro Takami |
| Constituency | Shimane 2nd |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1946-11-03)3 November 1946 Kakeya, Shimane,Japan |
| Died | 17 September 2021(2021-09-17) (aged 74) Tokyo, Japan |
| Political party | Liberal Democratic |
| Relatives | Noboru Takeshita (brother) |
| Alma mater | Keio University |
Wataru Takeshita (竹下 亘,Takeshita Wataru, November 3, 1946 – September 17, 2021) was aJapanesepolitician who served in theHouse of Representatives in theDiet (national legislature) as a member of theLiberal Democratic Party. A native ofKakeya, Shimane and graduate ofKeio University he was elected for the first time in 2000. His elder brother was former prime ministerNoboru Takeshita.
Before entering politics in 2000, Takeshita was a reporter withNHK, then began working for his brother as an aide in 1985.[1]
He was the leader of the Heisei Kenkyukai faction from 2018 until his death 3 years later,[2] which supportedYoshihide Suga in the 2020Liberal Democratic Party of Japan leadership election.[3]
Takeshita was affiliated to the openly revisionist organizationNippon Kaigi.[4] He held an anti-homosexual stance.[5]
In July 2021, Takeshita announced that he would be retiring from politics at the next general election for health reasons, having been diagnosed withesophageal cancer in 2019.[6] He died in office on 17 September 2021.[7]
Suga was supported by four powerful groups. These included the 98-member Seiwa Seisaku Kenkyukai, led by Hiroyuki Hosoda, head of the Lower House constitutional review board. Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso's 54-member faction, the Shikokai, and former General Council Chair Wataru Takeshita's 54-member faction, the Heisei Kenkyukai, were also behind him.
Wataru Takeshita, who heads a major faction in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said Thursday he will retire from politics for health reasons, ruling him out of the next House of Representatives election to be held by this fall. The announcement came as the 74-year-old former chair of the LDP General Council undergoes treatment after revealing an esophageal cancer diagnosis in 2019. He returned to work the following November but has been absent from faction meetings since May.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister for Reconstruction 2014–2015 | Succeeded by |
| House of Representatives (Japan) | ||
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Budget Committee 2016 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Chief of the Organisation and Movement Headquarters, Liberal Democratic Party 2012–2014 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the Diet Affairs Committee, Liberal Democratic Party 2016—2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chairman of the General Council, Liberal Democratic Party 2017—2018 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Head of theHeisei Kenkyūkai 2018—2021 | Succeeded by |
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