Yoshimasa Hayashi

Yoshimasa Hayashi
Yoshimasa Hayashi
林芳正
	Official portrait, 2024
Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 21 October 2025
Prime Minister	Sanae Takaichi
Preceded by	Seiichiro Murakami
Chief Cabinet Secretary
	In office; 14 December 2023 – 21 October 2025
Prime Minister	Fumio Kishida; Shigeru Ishiba
Preceded by	Hirokazu Matsuno
Succeeded by	Minoru Kihara
Minister for Foreign Affairs
	In office; 10 November 2021 – 13 September 2023
Prime Minister	Fumio Kishida
Succeeded by	Yoko Kamikawa
Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
	In office; 3 August 2017 – 2 October 2018
Prime Minister	Shinzō Abe
Preceded by	Hirokazu Matsuno
Succeeded by	Hiroshi Moriyama
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
	In office; 23 February 2015 – 7 October 2015
Prime Minister	Shinzō Abe
Preceded by	Koya Nishikawa
Succeeded by	Hiroshi Moriyama
	In office; 26 December 2012 – 3 September 2014
Prime Minister	Shinzō Abe
Preceded by	Akira Gunji
Succeeded by	Koya Nishikawa
Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy
	In office; 2 July 2009 – 16 September 2009
Prime Minister	Taro Aso
Preceded by	Kaoru Yosano
Succeeded by	Naoto Kan
Minister of Defense
	In office; 2 August 2008 – 24 September 2008
Prime Minister	Yasuo Fukuda
Preceded by	Shigeru Ishiba
Succeeded by	Yasukazu Hamada
Member of the House of Representatives; for Yamaguchi's 3rd district;
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 3 November 2021
Preceded by	Takeo Kawamura
Member of the House of Councillors; for Yamaguchi's at-large district;
	In office; 24 July 1995 – 16 August 2021
Preceded by	Ken'ichi Yamada
Succeeded by	Tsuneo Kitamura
Personal details
Born	19 January 1961 (aged 64); Shimonoseki, Japan
Political party	Liberal Democratic
Spouse(s)	Yuko Hayashi
Children	2
Parents	Yoshiro Hayashi (father); Mariko Hayashi (mother)
Relatives	Reiko Hayashi (sister); Keisuke Hayashi (paternal grandfather); Heishiro Hayashi (great-great-grandfather); Katsusada Hirose (uncle-in-law)
Alma mater	University of Tokyo (LLB) ; Harvard University (MPA)
Signature
Website	Official website

Yoshimasa Hayashi (林芳正code: ja is deprecated , Hayashi Yoshimasa, born 19 January 1961) is a Japanese politician who has been the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications since 2025. He was the Chief Cabinet Secretary from 2023 until 2025. He was the Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2021 to 2024.^[1] He is a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. He is also in the House of Representatives for the Yamaguchi 3rd district since 2021.

In August 2024, Hayashi announced his candidacy for the Liberal Democratic leadership election to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.^[2] He lost the election to former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba on 27 September 2024.^[3]

In September 2025, Hayashi announced his second candidacy for President of the Liberal Democratic Party in the Liberal Democratic leadership election to replace Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.^[4] He was eliminated in the first round on 4 October.^[5] After Sanae Takaichi was confirmed as prime minister, she named Hayashi as the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications in her cabinet.