Abe becomes Japan’s longest-serving prime minister

Shinzo Abe has entered the history books as Japan’s longest-serving premier, AFP reported. Wednesday marks Abe’s 2,887th day in office, topping the record previously set by Taro Katsura, a revered politician who served three times between 1901 and 1913.

Abe’s grip on power remains firm as the 65-year-old passes the landmark, with his tenure likely to last until at least September 2021 and no clear successor yet on the horizon.

The premier has plenty of unfinished business, saying earlier this year that he hoped to “take on the challenge to create a new country.”

He has reiterated his long-cherished ambition of revising Japan’s post-war constitution to change the status of the country’s self defense forces.