Former PM Yoshiro Mori Appears Drastically Thinner at Luxury Steakhouse—A Somber Birthday for the “Don of Seiwa-kai”

The gentle old man look he showed at his birthday gathering

On July 14, as Tokyo was gripped by intense summer heat, a private gathering was quietly held at the Ginza steakhouse Hirayama. It was a birthday celebration for former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, 89.

Hirayama is an ultra-luxury restaurant where dinner costs around ¥50,000 per person. In the past, political heavyweights including the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who died at 67, and former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, 77, were frequent patrons. It was also a favored venue for behind-the-scenes meetings where politicians discussed political maneuvering, policy and party strategy.

At 5 p.m., Mori arrived in a white luxury vehicle. A male aide pushed him in a wheelchair as he entered the restaurant. Gone was the imposing physique he once carried when he wielded enormous power as a faction leader; he appeared dramatically thinner, almost like a different person.

After being greeted by the chef, his expression seemed to soften slightly. The piercing stare he once directed at political opponents had also faded, replaced by a gentle, almost grandfatherly look.

“It was a birthday gathering attended only by family members, including his wife and daughter. Apparently, no politicians were there. Mori used to enjoy the restaurant’s signature steak, but recently he has been eating only soup and a small amount of hamburger steak. This time, it seems he was more interested in spending time with his family than in the meal itself.

“Mori now spends his days going back and forth between a prestigious nursing home, reportedly requiring an entrance fee of around ¥60 million, and a hospital. Under those circumstances, he was apparently invited by the restaurant through an acquaintance, which led to the birthday gathering being arranged,” said a Liberal Democratic Party source.

At around 8 p.m., Mori left the restaurant. He was handed a bouquet, presumably a birthday gift, and returned to the nursing home looking satisfied.

The LDP, now without its longtime elder statesman, remains mired in turmoil. Following the political-funds scandal over faction fundraising tickets in 2024–25, almost all of the party’s factions were dissolved.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, 65, however, relied on the only major faction left—the Aso faction, officially known as Shikokai—to win the party leadership election. In the House of Representatives election in February, many lawmakers implicated in the slush-funds scandal also managed to win their seats back. The party has yet to fully break away from the factions that became a breeding ground for the scandal.

Mori’s small figure, being pushed away from Ginza in a wheelchair, seemed to symbolize the end of an era.

The July 24 issue of “FRIDAY,” dated August 7–14, as well as the paid edition “FRIDAY GOLD,” features additional photographs from the birthday gathering and coverage of Mori’s role in the breakup of the former Seiwa-kai faction.

For more details and additional photographs, click here.

From the August 7 & 14, 2026, combined issue of “FRIDAY”