Shinsuke Suematsu

Suematsu was born on December 17, 1955, in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture. He graduated from the School of Law and Politics, Kwansei Gakuin University in 1979 and worked for All Nippon Airways.

Suematsu entered politics in 1983, successfully contesting the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly election as a Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) candidate. He served six consecutive terms in the assembly, and was elected deputy speaker of the assembly in 1996. In April 2003 Suematsu was elected to his sixth term, winning the highest number of votes in the three-member Tarumi district with 39.4%.{{cite web|url=http://web.pref.hyogo.jp/pa25/documents/000038003.pdf |script-title=ja:6 開票 |trans-title=6: Results |language=Japanese |page=3 |access-date=31 March 2016}} On 24 June 2004 he resigned from the assembly to contest the House of Councillors election scheduled for the following month.{{cite web|url=http://web.pref.hyogo.jp/pa25/documents/000037909_1.pdf |script-title=ja:平成17 年７ 月３ 日執行 神戸市垂水区選挙区補欠選挙 |trans-title=Tarumi district by-election held 3 July 2005 |language=Japanese |page=1 |access-date=31 March 2016}}

In the election for two Councillors in the Hyogo at-large district, Suematsu finished second behind Shunichi Mizuoka of the Democratic Party of Japan with 33.5% of the vote.{{cite web|url=http://web.pref.hyogo.jp/pa25/documents/000037986.pdf |script-title=ja:7 開票 |trans-title=7: Results |language=Japanese |page=2 |access-date=31 March 2016}} During his first term as a Councillor, Suematsu was appointed as a vice minister for finance in a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. Suematsu retained the position when Fukuda was replaced by Taro Aso in September 2008 and remained in the position until the LDP lost power at the September 2009 general election.

Suematsu was elected to a second term at the July 2010 House of Councillors election. On this occasion he received the highest vote with 29.4%. Mizuoka retained his seat in the House, finishing second in a field of seven candidates with 21.8%.{{cite web|url=http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/election/sangiin/2010/kaihyou/ye28.htm |title=選挙区 兵庫県 開票結果 参院選2010 参院選 選挙 |trans-title=Hyogo at-large district election results, 2010 House of Councillors election |publisher=Yomiuri Shimbun |access-date=19 February 2016}}

On 10 August 2022, Suematsu was dismissed from the Second Kishida Cabinet because of ties to the Unification Church. His dismissal was part of a wider purge by the Kishida administration following the assassination of Shinzo Abe and increasing media scrutiny of LDP officials' close ties with the church. {{cite news | title = Japan’s leader names new Cabinet to distance his administration from Unification Church | newspaper = Los Angeles Times | date = 2022-08-10 | url = https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2022-08-10/japan-new-cabinet-cut-ties-unification-church | accessdate =2022-08-12}}{{cite news | title = 旧統一教会名称変更「指示とかない」　末松文科相が下村氏の関与否定 | newspaper = Asahi Shimbun | date = 2022-08-10 | url = https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASQ856KT1Q85UTIL02R.html |language=ja| accessdate =2022-08-12}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://suematsu.org/ Official website] {{in lang|ja}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20051120031530/http://www.sangiin.go.jp/japanese/joho1/profile/616.htm Profile at House of Councillors website] {{in lang|ja}}

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{{s-bef|before=Tatsumi Osawa, Shōji Motooka}}

{{s-ttl|title=Councillor for Hyogo at-large district|years=2004–present}}

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{{s-bef|before=Kōichi Hagiuda}}

{{s-ttl|title=Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology|years=2021–2022}}

{{s-aft|after=Keiko Nagaoka}}

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Category:Members of the House of Councillors (Japan)

Category:Members of the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly

Category:Living people

Category:1955 births

Category:Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) politicians