= Naoto Kan = '''Naoto Kan''' ('''菅 直人''') was [[Japan/PrimeMinisters|prime minister of Japan]]. <> ---- == History == Kan was elected to the diet in 1980 as a member of the [[Japan/SocialDemocraticParty|Social Democratic Party]]. He then joined the [[Japan/NewPartySakigake|New Party Sakigake]] in 1993, which entered into a [[Japan/LiberalDemocraticParty|LDP]]-led coalition government in 1994. As Minister of Health and Welfare, he admitted the government's role in the spread of HIV-tainted blood in the 1980s. === DPJ === Kan was an early leader of the [[Japan/DemocraticPartyOfJapan#A1996_Formation|Democratic Party of Japan]]. He served as party leader across several terms. ---- CategoryRicottone