He ran again, and returned to the head of government as a savior in December 2012, ending a turbulent period in which prime ministers succeeded each other at a rate of up to one a year.
Hit by the effects of the tsunami in 2011 and the subsequent Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan found in Abe a reliable hand.
Abe became known abroad for his economic revival strategy, known as the abenomicslaunched as of 2012, in which it mixed monetary easing, massive budget reactivation and structural reforms.
It registered some achievements, such as an increase in the activity rate of women and the elderly. She also turned more heavily to immigration to deal with labor shortages.
However, in the absence of really ambitious reforms, this program was only partially successful, today clearly overshadowed by the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Abe, often punctuated by scandals that affected his environment, knew how to take advantage of external events – North Korean missile firings, natural catastrophes – to divert attention and present himself as an indispensable leader in the face of adversity.
His ability to hold on to power despite being marred by various scandals earned him the nickname “Teflon Abe.”