Shigeru Ishiba’s Wife Yoshiko Ishiba First Rejected The Marriage Proposal
Former defense minister Shigeru Ishiba won his party’s leadership contest on Friday, which effectively makes him the next Prime Minister of Japan.
Apart from being a well-known politician, Mr. Ishiba is also a loving husband to his wife and a doting father to his children.
Highlights
- Shigeru Ishiba has been married to his wife, Yoshiko Ishiba, since September 1983.
- The married pair were classmates while studying law at Keio University.
- The wife of the LDP president first rejected his marriage proposal.
The former defense minister, who is a native of Tottori, is considered a “hawk” due to his vast knowledge of security and active involvement in constitutional reform as well as self-defense.
However, his wife of four decades revealed that he is a dove at home.
“My husband can be strict when out, but at home he’s a very gentle man. Every day, he calls me on his way home from work to say, ‘I’m on my way home,’ and on weekends he drives me to the supermarket and always brings me a present on my birthday.”
Yoshiko Ishiba
During the same interview, Mrs. Ishiba also shared that she doesn’t call her spouse by his name but “Shige-san.” Similarly, the LDP president also lovingly called his lady love “Yocchan.”
Shigeru Ishiba And His Wife Yoshiko Ishiba First Met At Keio University
The Ishiba couple crossed paths for the first time when they were both in the Faculty of Law at Keio University. They were classmates.
It was love at first sight for the politician. When he first saw Yoshiko in the classroom, he was said to have wondered if someone so beautiful could exist.
Even now, Mr. Ishiba is known as “the most devoted husband in Nagatacho” and he is still head over heels for his beautiful spouse.
View this post on Instagram
A Tokyo native, Yoshiko Ishiba, went to a private girls’ school before attending Keio University.
She said her now-husband was running a study group called “Ishiba’s Yamakake Lecture Series” to help students prepare for their final exams back then.
Mrs. Ishiba joined the lecture after her friend invited her and that’s how she spoke with Mr. Ishiba for the first time.
She said her husband already knew which high school she graduated from and told her that his two elder sisters also went to the same school.
But, it didn’t give Mr. Ishiba a good first impression. The First Lady also revealed the fashion sense of his college day.
My husband had a different vibe from the other male students. At the time, jeans and the “Ivy Look” fashion were popular, but he always wore a shirt, tie, and jacket neatly, and I thought he was a serious guy.
The two remained friends for four years of university. Soon after the graduation ceremony, Mr. Ishiba took a step forward, confessed his love to Yoshiko Ishiba, and asked her to date him with marriage in mind.
Yoshiko Ishiba Said, “I’m sorry”
Mrs. Ishiba said she turned him down because she wanted him to stop giving up on what he wanted to do just because he wanted to marry.
“He had secured a job at a bank. When he confessed to me, I got the feeling that he was trying to say, ‘I wanted to be an academic or a lawyer, but I’ve chosen a stable path so that I can marry you.”
After that, the pair went their separate ways. Mr. Ishiba worked for a major bank, and Yoshiko worked for a general trading company.
But when the politician’s father, Jiro, a member of the House of Councillors, passed away in 1981, Yoshiko and some friends sent condolence money to him, and the couple began to get in touch again.
石破茂氏の妻、「夫は真剣になりすぎると怖い顔に」が改善点https://t.co/SSDGCyVAaR
「夫は真剣になりすぎると怖い顔になってしまいます。みなさんに元気を与えるためにも、もっと笑顔が増えてもいいかなと思います」#石破茂 #悩み #行列のできる法律相談所 pic.twitter.com/EXVNpjPD16— NEWSポストセブン (@news_postseven) January 20, 2019
Eventually, they started dating and got engaged. She was about to become the wife of a banker, but Mr. Ishiba decided to become a politician in the footsteps of his late father.
“It came as a bolt from the blue. My husband’s name appeared in the newspaper as a candidate for the election, and he decided to quit his job at the bank.”
Mr. Ishiba also immediately called his then-fiancé to explain the situation. He said, “This is what happened, but it was all so sudden, and you can drop the talk of marriage if you want.’ I knew nothing about politics, so I was really worried.”
Should I get married or not? Mrs. Ishiba’s dilemma was resolved when her father asked
“Do you choose your marriage partner based on their profession or personality?”
With that one sentence, Yoshiko Ishiba made up her mind.
Finally, the couple tied the knot in September 1983. Their wedding ceremony was held at the Hotel New Otani in Akasaka, Tokyo.
Additional Information
- Shigeru Ishiba shares two daughters with his wife, Yoshiko Ishiba.
- Their eldest child graduated from the Faculty of Economics at Waseda University, and the second daughter graduated from Tokyo University of Science.
- Jiro Ishiba, Shigeru Ishiba’s father, served as the governor of Tottori Prefecture before becoming a member of the House of Councillors.
- Shigeru Ishiba’s net worth details are not public.
