Yoshihiko Noda

is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and Leader of the Democratic Party of Japan from 2011 to 2012. He is a member of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and a member of the House of Representatives (lower house) in the Diet (national legislature). He was named to succeed Naoto Kan as a result of a runoff vote against Banri Kaieda in his party, and was formally appointed by the Emperor Akihito on 2 September 2011. Following a severe loss for the DPJ in the December 2012 general election, Noda conceded defeat and announced his resignation as party leader, triggering a leadership election that was won by Kaieda. Noda was succeeded by Shinzo Abe, President of the Liberal Democratic Party as Prime Minister on 26 December 2012. Early life Noda was born in Funabashi on 20 May 1957, the son of a paratrooper in the Japan Self-Defense Forces. Unlike many prominent Japanese politicians, Noda has no family connections to Nagatachō. His parents were too poor to pay for a wedding reception. Noda graduated from Chiba Prefectural Funabashi Senior High School in 1975. He graduated from Waseda University with the B.A. degree in Political Science in 1980 and was later accepted into the prestigious Matsushita Institute. This institution was founded by Kōnosuke Matsushita (the founder of Panasonic) to groom future civic leaders of Japan. While attending the Matsushita Institute, Noda read household gas meters as a part-time job in his native Chiba Prefecture, partially in order to get to know his future constituents better in preparation for a run for office. He was first elected to the assembly of Chiba Prefecture in 1987 at the age of 29.