Sanae Takaichi, the first female prime minister in Japan, has been praised for providing a calm, stable leadership in the country. Her victory in the recent general election saw her Liberal Democratic Party win 316 of the 465 seats in the House of Representatives, the lower house of the Diet, the nation’s parliament. This victory included an agreement with the United States that Japan would provide $550 million in new investment. Since 2016, Japan has promoted the Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) involving collaboration among maritime democracies in the region. Despite recent controversies over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), President Donald Trump withdrew Japan's signature from the TPP. The strong Japan-U.S. relationship can be a foundation for economic and security regional cooperation in the Pacific.