Kazuo Shii

Kazuo Shii
志位 和夫
Shii in October 2024
Chairman of the Central Committee of the Japanese Communist Party
Assumed office
18 January 2024
Preceded byTetsuzo Fuwa (2006)
Chairman of the Japanese Communist Party
In office
24 November 2000 – 18 January 2024
Preceded byTetsuzo Fuwa
Succeeded byTomoko Tamura
Secretary-General of the Japanese Communist Party
In office
13 July 1990 – 24 November 2000
Preceded byMitsuhiro Kaneko
Succeeded byTadayoshi Ichida
Member of the House of Representatives
Assumed office
18 July 1993
ConstituencyChiba 1st
(1993–1996)
Southern Kanto PR block
(1996–present)
Personal details
Born (1954-07-29) 29 July 1954 (age 70)
Yotsukaidō, Chiba, Japan
Political partyJapanese Communist Party
Alma materUniversity of Tokyo (BE)
OccupationPolitician and staff of the political party
Websiteshii.gr.jp

Kazuo Shii (志位 和夫, Shii Kazuo, born 29 July 1954) is a Japanese politician who has been the chairman of the Central Committee of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) since 2024. He previously served as the chairman of the Executive Committee of the Central Committee of the JCP from 24 November 2000 to 18 January 2024.

Born in Yotsukaidō in Chiba Prefecture, Shii first joined the JCP while studying in the University of Tokyo. He participated in the JCP's Tokyo Committee after graduation, and worked in the Party Central Committee from 1982. He became the head of the secretariat in 1990, and was elected as a member of the House of Representatives in 1993. He became the chairman of the Party Executive Committee in 2000. He led the party until 18 January 2024, when he resigned as the executive committee chairman, and was succeeded by Tomoko Tamura. On the same day, Shii was appointed as the chairman of the Central Committee.