is a Japanese politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

, a member of the House of Representatives of Japan

House of Representatives of Japan

The is the lower house of the Diet of Japan. The House of Councillors of Japan is the upper house.The House of Representatives has 480 members, elected for a four-year term. Of these, 180 members are elected from 11 multi-member constituencies by a party-list system of proportional representation,...

. Born in Dalian

Dalian

Dalian is a major city and seaport in the south of Liaoning province, Northeast China. It faces Shandong to the south, the Yellow Sea to the east and the Bohai Sea to the west and south. Holding sub-provincial administrative status, Dalian is the southernmost city of Northeast China and China's...

, Manchukuo

Manchukuo

Manchukuo or Manshū-koku was a puppet state in Manchuria and eastern Inner Mongolia, governed under a form of constitutional monarchy. The region was the historical homeland of the Manchus, who founded the Qing Empire in China...

, he is a graduate of Waseda University

Waseda University

, abbreviated as , is one of the most prestigious private universities in Japan and Asia. Its main campuses are located in the northern part of Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as Tokyo Senmon Gakko, the institution was renamed "Waseda University" in 1902. It is known for its liberal climate...

. He worked at Bridgestone

Bridgestone

The is a multinational rubber conglomerate founded in 1931 by in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan. The name Bridgestone comes from a calque translation and transposition of ishibashi, meaning "stone bridge" in Japanese....

.

He lost his vision in one eye in childhood.

As a Diet member, he served as Minister of Construction, and Director General of the Defense Agency. He was a member of YKK

YKK

YKK may refer to:* Kitkatla Water Aerodrome , Kitkatla, British Columbia, Canada* YKK Group, a Japanese group of manufacturing companies, notably zippers* Yekîtîya Komunîstên Kurdistan, a former Kurdish communist group in Turkey...

 with Kōichi Katō

Koichi Kato (LDP)

is a Japanese politician . Born in Tsuruoka, Yamagata Prefecture, he is a member of the House of Representatives and the Liberal Democratic Party.- Political career :...

 and Jun'ichirō Koizumi

Junichiro Koizumi

is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics when his term in parliament ended.Widely seen as a maverick leader of the Liberal Democratic Party , he became known as an economic reformer, focusing on Japan's government debt and the...

. Yamasaki was also the leader of a small faction that bore his name. In November 2000, along with Kōichi Katō, Yamasaki was heavily involved in the failed intraparty coup against Prime Minister Yoshirō Mori

Yoshiro Mori

is a Japanese politician who served as the 85th and 86th Prime Minister of Japan starting at 5 April 2000 ending 26 April 2001. Described as having "the heart of a flea and the brain of a shark," he was an unpopular prime minister mainly remembered today for his many gaffes and situationally...

. He became Secretary-General of the Liberal Democratic Party

Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)

The , frequently abbreviated to LDP or , is a centre-right political party in Japan. It is one of the most consistently successful political parties in the democratic world. The LDP ruled almost continuously for nearly 54 years from its founding in 1955 until its defeat in the 2009 election...

 in 2001, and the Vice-President of the LDP in 2003.

In the 2003 election

Japan general election, 2003

A general election took place in Japan on November 9, 2003. Incumbent Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of the Liberal Democrat Party won the election but with a reduced majority. The main opposition Democratic Party made considerable gains, winning 177 of the 480 seats in the House of...

 Yamasaki was defeated by Jun'ichirō Koga of the Democratic Party

Democratic Party of Japan

The is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...

. He subsequently resigned from the vice-presidency of the LDP and took on the role of a political advisor.

In 2005, re-elected to the House of Representatives by-election on Fukuoka Prefecture

Fukuoka Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen....

 2nd Electoral District and Chiefship, Special Committee on Postal Privatization.

Possible Koizumi successor

Yamasaki, Shinzō Abe

Shinzo Abe

was the 90th Prime Minister of Japan, elected by a special session of the National Diet on 26 September 2006. He was Japan's youngest post–World War II prime minister and the first born after the war. Abe served as prime minister for nearly twelve months, before resigning on 12 September 2007...

, and Foreign Minister Tarō Asō

Taro Aso

was the 92nd Prime Minister of Japan serving from September 2008 to September 2009, and was defeated in the August 2009 election.He has served in the House of Representatives since 1979. He was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2007, and was Secretary-General of the LDP briefly in 2007 and...

, were all considered candidates to replace Koizumi after the prime minister's term expired in September 2006. All three are conservative on foreign policy issues and have taken confrontational stances toward other East Asian nations, particularly North Korea

North Korea

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

 and, to a lesser extent, China. Abe is considered a more "moderate" politician than the more "hard-line" Asō, and has led Asō in opinion polling within Japan. http://www.cominganarchy.com/archives/2005/11/01/hardline-hawk-or-unapologetic-bigot However, Abe stated that he might continue controversial Yasukuni shrine visits if he became Prime Minister. Yamasaki could be considered most "moderate" among the three as he opposes Yasukuni shrine visits by the PM.

Abe was voted Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Japan

The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

on 26 September 2006.

External links

• http://www.taku.net/profile/english.html