Tokyo —

For most of her life, Sanae Takaichi has loved heavy metal.

Since drumming in a college band, the 64-year-old politician has remained a fan of groups like Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden. She used to play so hard that she carried four pairs of sticks as back-up in case they snapped, Japanese media has reported.

But unlike most metalheads who mellow with age, the woman likely to be Japan’s next prime minister is still an enthusiast. She has an electric drum set at home and bangs out songs whenever she’s stressed, usually about her husband.

“I play after he goes to sleep,” she joked during a recent interview with a Japanese YouTuber.

That same headbanging energy has defined her steady, albeit unconventional, political rise.

The staunch conservative and longtime lawmaker won Japan’s ruling party’s presidency on October 4, becoming the first woman ever to secure the post, after her third attempt. But with her coalition prospects in doubt, and the party weakened by scandal and voter frustration, her route to Japan’s top job is far from assured.

Days after winning the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership, a victory that would normally all but guarantee the premiership, Takaichi was dealt an unexpected setback. The LDP’s longtime coalition partner, Komeito, announced it would not join a government under her, citing lingering mistrust over an LDP political slush fund scandal.