Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the first woman to lead the country's executive branch, has drawn sharp criticism from opposition lawmakers after revealing she sleeps between zero and three hours per night. Takaichi disclosed the habit in a July 20 post on X that garnered over 30 million views, noting she had slept five hours on Marine Day, a national holiday, for the first time in months.
Opposition politician Toru Kunishige warned that prolonged sleep deprivation impairs judgment and could jeopardize national crisis management. Fellow opposition lawmaker Hiroyuki Konishi demanded Takaichi's resignation, arguing a prime minister should set policy directions rather than scrutinize every document.
The backlash compounds existing pressure on Takaichi, whose cabinet holds a 41% approval rating. An investigative report has also alleged her office deployed AI-generated videos to discredit rivals Shinjiro Koizumi and Yoshimasa Hayashi during the 2025 Liberal Democratic Party leadership contest.