Released: September 6, 2006

Support for a Female Heir in Japan

With the news today that Japan's 39-year-old Princess Kiko has given birth to a male heir, a succession crisis has apparently been averted. A 1947 law dictates that only a male can ascend to the Chrysanthemum Throne, but there had been no princes born to the royal family since 1965, leading many to call for changing the law so a female could eventually rule. The results of a recent Pew Global Attitudes survey show that the Japanese public was ready for just such a change: 76% would have favored amending the Imperial Household Act to allow a female to take the throne.

Read the complete analysis at pewresearch.org