Populist Contradictions in Digital Authoritarianism: The Case of Takaichi Sanae, Abe Shinzo, and the Online Masses

This paper reconstructs the phenomenon of digital authoritarianism in post- Abe Japan as an inherent contradiction of populism. By analyzing the political communication strategies of Takaichi Sanae and the conservative digital networks surrounding Abe Shinzo, it redefines the structure of authority in the digital era as a triadic interaction among authority, crowd, and algorithm. Traditional populist frameworks are based on the dichotomy of ”people versus elite.” This study expands that into a triadic logic—authority versus crowd versus algorithm—demonstrating how online emotional amplification, conspiracy narra- tives, and affective identity politics stabilize a new form of symbolic legitimacy. Particular attention is paid to the Japanese specificity of digital authoritarian- ism: the synthesis of tradition, nation, and female leadership. Takaichi’s rhetorical performance combines the progressive imagery of a female leader with a regressive nationalist revival, functioning as a “hybrid populist” capable of reconciling liberal expectation with conservative desire through algorithmic mediation. Finally, the paper situates these dynamics within the framework of infocratic governance—a form of control exercised not through coercion but through infor- mation modulation. The ethical limits of digital populism are thus exposed as the contradiction between expressive freedom and algorithmic dependence.