Departures of note

Yasuo Fukuda was a Japanese politician who served as the 91st Prime Minister of Japan from September 2007 to September 2008. Born in Tokyo in July 1936, he was the son of Takeo Fukuda, who had also served as prime minister, making them the first father-and-son pair to both hold the office in Japanese constitutional history. He graduated from Waseda University's School of Political Science and Economics and worked at Maruzen Petroleum for over 17 years before entering politics.

Fukuda was first elected to the House of Representatives in 1990 from Gunma's old 3rd district, winning seven consecutive terms and belonging to the Seiwa-kai faction once led by his father. He served as Chief Cabinet Secretary under the Mori and Koizumi cabinets from 2000 to 2004, where he was dubbed the 'shadow foreign minister' for quietly supporting the Japan-US relationship.

He became prime minister in September 2007 after winning the LDP presidential election against Taro Aso, following Shinzo Abe's sudden resignation. His tenure was marked by a divided Diet, a failed grand coalition proposal with the Democratic Party, and a standoff over the Bank of Japan governor appointment. In foreign affairs he hosted the 2008 G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit and built close ties with Chinese President Hu Jintao, while domestically he advanced the creation of the Consumer Affairs Agency and the Public Records Management Act.

He announced his resignation in a surprise press conference on September 1, 2008, and retired from politics after declining to run in the 2012 general election. He died at the age of 90.