The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.
By Andrew R. Vaz
October 20, 2025
A New Populist Phenomenon in Japan
A new phenomenon is occurring within Japan’s archipelago – a populist movement is rising among the locals that demands the nation preserve its culture and heritage intact. Japan, a relatively homogeneous society, has often kept to itself and viewed items such as diversity and inclusion as largely Western ideals. However, with the rise of the new global economy and increased foreign tourism, the nation has opened up more to foreign business over the first couple of decades of the 21st century. With foreign investment comes foreign influence, both good and bad.
Compounded with a struggling economy, Japan’s march toward an ultraconservative populist agenda follows that of the United States, Germany, Italy and France, nations with hardline nationalist movements against migration and diversity. The right-aligned political party known as Sanseito is the name of the party in Japan that grabbed much attention this year. In English, Sanseito means “Party of Do It Yourself.” This article will examine the rise of the Sanseito party and all of the anti-immigration efforts that are taking place in Japan. This article will also determine if the recent election results are an indication of political realignment or if this was a deviation from the norm.
Founding of the Sanseito Party and the COVID-19 Pandemic
It appears the origins of the Sanseito party go back to 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan, like many other nations, was hit hard by the pandemic. The nation was scheduled to host the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, an event that was pushed to the following year in 2021. It was the first time the international gathering of athletes was postponed. Despite the move, the event was linked to a surge of new cases in Japan. At the same time, fear and resentment toward foreigners (along with economic anxiety) were growing. This wasn’t seen on the streets of Tokyo or Osaka but online. Sanseito was founded in March 2020 on YouTube by its leader, Sohei Kamiya. Kamiya is notorious for promoting misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic and the vaccine.
Kamiya is no stranger to the political scene; he ran an unsuccessful campaign before in Japan, only to springboard back into the limelight by feeding the conspiracy theorists online about the pandemic. In 2022, Kamiya was elected to the upper house of the Japanese Parliament. He ran on a campaign of listening to what people were worried about and made promises to fix all their pertinent issues. Kamiya also concentrated his efforts on social media, reaching potential younger voters online. The pandemic, along with rising inflation and stagnant wages, captivated Kamiya’s audiences similarly to the far-right populist movements in the West. This was the formula that led to the populist party’s sizable gain in the parliament in 2025.
2025 Parliamentary Election Gain
In the July 2025 Japanese Upper House election, Sanseito won 14 of 124 contested seats and garnered 12.6 percent of the national vote, the third-highest share of any party. In total, Sanseito has 15 seats, as its leader already has a seat in the Upper House. Sanseito’s electoral success marks the first time that a clearly far-right party has captured over 10 percent of the national vote. Despite the emergence of several smaller far-right parties since the early 2010s, none have come close to achieving this level of popular support.
Sanseito ran on an anti-foreigner, pro-Japanese platform. Anti-immigrant policies, which allow populists to vent their dissatisfaction on easy targets, are appealing to more Japanese as they struggle with dwindling salaries, rising prices and bleak future outlooks. Although Japan has always been cautious about immigration, the government has recently relaxed immigration regulations in an attempt to increase manpower as a result of the country’s aging population.
Growing apprehension about immigration and overtourism is reflected in Sanseito’s popularity. Though the result is significant, it remains premature to label it as a pivotal election. Sanseito’s policies, while based on anti-foreigner sentiments, were not mainly centered on immigration issues, and its ascent probably indicates situational benefits rather than a lasting political shift.
The Anti-Immigration Agenda
Japan has traditionally experienced very low immigration rates; however, this trend is changing. As of the end of last year, approximately 3.77 million foreign residents were living in Japan, representing a nearly 11 percent increase from the previous year and marking a new record high. Also, only about 20 percent have acquired permanent residency status, implying a relatively weak long-term commitment to Japan. This is unsustainable, to say the least. By 2040, the country will require three times more foreign laborers, reaching a total of 6.7 million individuals, to attain an annual growth of 1.24 percent, based on a 2022 study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency. Experts warn that the Japanese economy, encompassing agriculture, fishing and services, will be immobilized without these workers.
What is central to Sanseito’s anti-immigration plan for Japan? Sanseito’s campaign platform is centered on policy recommendations that would limit several foreign residents’ privileges. These include more stringent conditions for naturalization, shorter allowed stays, more stringent laws for family reunion and even the denial of voting rights to first-generation naturalized citizens. Additionally, the party supports new policies such as the establishment of a Comprehensive Foreigner Policy Agency, the passing of a framework law to support more stringent immigration laws and a prohibition on the alleged imposition of foreign cultures and values.
Although the count of foreign residents in Japan hit a record high last year, it remains just above 3 percent of the overall population, which is low compared to international norms. Despite the election hype, Japan can continue to accept a controlled flow of new foreign residents with backgrounds that most easily facilitate their integration into Japanese society over time. This is why I believe the recent election results will be seen as an outlier, not representative of a political shift.
Conclusion
Japan may be on the verge of closing itself off to the rest of the world again. The country is facing a debate on whether it should pursue mass immigration to fix its economic issues and declining birth rate or keep its homogenous culture and national identity that the nation holds dear. In my opinion, Sanseito’s 14-seat victory in this summer’s election was more of an anomaly. The party’s actual vote-winning capacity appears less rooted in concrete and specific policy proposals and more in packaging disparate concerns under the broad, emotionally resonant banner of “Japanese First.” This does not always mean that the population is becoming more supportive of stringent anti-immigration policies. Ironically, the importance of non-immigrant problems highlights the likelihood that immigration won’t be a defining issue in the upcoming elections in Japan.
Nonetheless, this could still be a very crucial moment for the East Asian nation and the world, one that could be the blueprint for how other nations dealing with populist movements move forward.
Author: Andrew R. Vaz, Ph.D. is a graduate of the Ph.D. in Public Policy and Ad-ministration program at Walden University, specializing in Public Man-agement and Leadership. He was already awarded a Master of Philoso-phy (MPhil) degree in the program. He is also a graduate of the Master of Science in Criminal Justice (MSCJ) and Master of Public Administration (MPA) double master’s program at Florida International University. He can be reached at [email protected].
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