[3][4] Considered one of the most high-profile and well-known Japanese politicians,[5] Koike has been frequently mentioned as holding Prime Ministerial ambitions.

However, Koike continues to endorse and campaign for Tomin First candidates in Tokyo and the party still makes frequent use of her image and policies.

[1] Koike later hinted that the much-publicized fight she had had with Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki over a vice-minister replacement was the real reason, as the opposition would use that to oppose a bill on Japan's terrorism laws.

[25] On 8 September 2008, she launched her bid to become president of the LDP and became the first woman ever to seek the premiership in Japan's history: "I have received the enthusiastic support of my colleagues.

[27] Following the resignation of Tokyo Governor Naoki Inose in December 2013, Koike was widely rumored to be a potential candidate for the gubernatorial election expected to be held in February 2014, along with Hideo Higashikokubaru, Hakubun Shimomura, Seiko Hashimoto and Yōichi Masuzoe.

[29] The LDP officially endorsed Hiroya Masuda, and its Tokyo chapter issued a notice that any members supporting Koike would be punished.

Nonetheless, several prominent LDP politicians continued to back Koike, while senior leaders such as Shinzo Abe refrained from making speeches in support of either candidate.

On 31 May 2017, in advance of the upcoming local elections, Koike resigned from the Liberal Democratic Party and officially became the leader of Tomin First no Kai (Tokyoites First).

Koike founded the group in 2016 in preparation for the elections and formed an alliance with Komeito in an effort to secure a governing majority in Tokyo's parliament.

[32] On 3 July 2017, the alliance took a majority in the prefectural election, pushing out the Liberal Democratic Party with a combined 79 seats of the 127-seat assembly.

[33] Koike joined Shinzo Abe's cabinet, where the country led the government response to COVID-19 pandemic in Japan,[34] as well as the postponement of 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics to 2021.

[citation needed] On 14 August 2022, Governor of Jakarta Anies Baswedan paid a working visit to Japan to meet with his counterpart from Tokyo, Yuriko Koike, to discuss the potential for cooperation in several fields, including for environment-friendly public transportation.

Baswedan posted a picture of the meeting with Koike at the Tokyo City Hall accompanied by several delegates on his personal Instagram account.

Leading the charge is Manabu Miyasaka, the newly appointed counselor to the governor on digital transformation of Tokyo and former chairman of Yahoo!

However, critics say other goals like tackling the overwork culture, reducing crowding on rush hour trains, and getting rid of above-ground electricity poles have not yet been achieved.

The crushing loss Ototake faced was reported as potentially putting a damper on continuous rumors regarding her wish to return to national politics following her failure in the 2017 Japanese general election.

[39] On August 6, 2024, Koike fractured her left knee while making a ceremonial first pitch at a Central League baseball match at the Meiji Jingu Stadium, forcing her to work remotely.

Her stated basic principles and stance regarding political reform are encompassed by "The 5 Cs: Check, Challenge, Change, Creative and Communication".

A strong turn towards IT development, natural sciences, sustainable infrastructure, and efficiency-based administrative reforms for public services were also on the docket.

[7][50][51][52] Beginning in 2017, Koike broke decades of precedent by previous mayors by refusing to offer condolences to the descendants of survivors at an annual ceremony.

[22][55][56] She suggested that the prime minister revise the interpretation of Article 9 of the Constitution of Japan to enable the government to exercise the right to collective self-defense.

[62] Aichi: Hideaki Ōmura Akita: Norihisa Satake Aomori: Sōichirō Miyashita Chiba: Toshihito Kumagai Ehime: Tokihiro Nakamura Fukui: Tatsuji Sugimoto Fukuoka: Seitaro Hattori Fukushima: Masao Uchibori Gifu: Hajime Furuta Gunma: Ichita Yamamoto Hiroshima: Hidehiko Yuzaki Hokkaidō: Naomichi Suzuki Hyōgo: Motohiko Saitō Ibaraki: Kazuhiko Ōigawa Ishikawa: Hiroshi Hase Iwate: Takuya Tasso Kagawa: Toyohito Ikeda Kagoshima: Kōichi Shiota Kanagawa: Yūji Kuroiwa Kōchi: Seiji Hamada Kumamoto: Takashi Kimura Kyoto: Takatoshi Nishiwaki Mie: Katsuyuki Ichimi Miyagi: Yoshihiro Murai Miyazaki: Shunji Kōno Nagano: Shuichi Abe Nagasaki: Kengo Oishi Nara: Makoto Yamashita Niigata: Hideyo Hanazumi Ōita: Kiichiro Satō Okayama: Ryuta Ibaragi Okinawa: Denny Tamaki Osaka: Hirofumi Yoshimura Saga: Yoshinori Yamaguchi Saitama: Motohiro Ōno Shiga: Taizō Mikazuki Shimane: Tatsuya Maruyama Shizuoka: Yasutomo Suzuki Tochigi: Tomikazu Fukuda Tokushima: Masazumi Gotoda Tokyo: Yuriko Koike Tottori: Shinji Hirai Toyama: Hachiro Nitta Wakayama: Shūhei Kishimoto Yamagata: Mieko Yoshimura Yamaguchi: Tsugumasa Muraoka Yamanashi: Kotaro Nagasaki