Japan's populist Sanseito increases seats to 13 from two

He said short clips of his street speeches spread widely on social media during the upper house election, but this time users focused instead on videos featuring Takaichi.

That's what happens when most of your population graduates high school.

The party of xenophobia and fear mongering.

Japan's minor populist party Sanseito increased its House of Representatives seats more than sixfold to 13 from two before Sunday's election

Unfortunately!

but its leader said he is not satisfied with the outcome

I hope that in the next election you and your stupid party will completely disappear.... you racist idiot!

No surprises there. They have been very slick and are cashing in on the anxieties and frustrations of the times. Got to hear the head honcho talk a few weeks back just by chance on an evening run here in Fukui. It was an eye opener and they were very savvy communicators.

Will give a small recommendation though to our expat community. DONT demonize them, don’t over react to them, don’t feel the need to get out there and scream and display your virtues of ‘anti racism’. Be calm, gracious and let Japan go through this growing period in its own way. Be stoic even. Most of us play very positive roles in the community, so just live by example.nothing more, nothing less.

The worst thing we could do would be to over react and start finger pointing because it will play right into their hands. Be like the Japanese and just ignore the things you don’t particularly like, no adding fuel to the fire and none of the ridiculous‘Nazi scum off our streets’ sort of idiot carry on you see from the left overseas. Unless of course you want the monster to grown. And JT I know this is all good clickbait, but be cool! This is an awakening for Japan, some old dormants spirits too, and the next few years will be a roller coaster ride as some very serious society and global tectonic shifts converge. Calm, empathic, caring and dignified. That’s our role good people.

Why is the media fawning over this party. Even the headline, makes it seem like they are this hugely powerful and popular group. Six fold increase! Yeah, they went from 2 to 13 seats. Big deal.

A dreadful party and dreadful supporters.

Under the patriotic (xenophobic) surface noise, there are a lot of cranky obsessives in that party: my local candidate was obsessed with homeschooling. I think the Jimin supermajority might defuse them from now on.

Maga have more talking points than this party. As with anything LDP, political parties fade fast and people forget and move on to the next thing.

As with anything not LDP*

Do they have any idea on how Japanese needs foreign workers in the future?

https://www.staffingindustry.com/news/global-daily-news/japan-faces-shortage-almost-million-foreign-workers-2040

.

If they opposed, who will pay pension and doing blue collars job in Japan?

Japan is clearly steering to the xenophobic agenda throwing the book for it’s own problems to the 3% visible minority.

Resentment and a lower educated media is part of the outcome of such elections.

With the far right leading the country expect things getting more harsh for the expats.

@Ricky While I agree with most of your post, I don't think we should ignore anything. Of course, we shouldn't overreact, but we cannot remain silent either. "As a silence cancer grows" Right?

I understand that a political party must be mindful of the popular sentiment, including fears. But short of a new generation of robots, immigration is key to Japan’s economic success. There are just too many old people and too few young ones. I hope that voters can do the math.

Fielded 190 candidates and won 13 seats....

That's a loss in my book.

A gambler or even a soccer coach couldn't survive with that ratio.

Be great when Saneito is gone for good !!

Kamiya, meanwhile, ruled out joining a coalition government with the LDP,

They don't need him. What is her even talking about?

Their country, their elections..

Get over it..

This election reflects the direction Japan has chosen, and now the country has to take responsibility for that choice. Takaichi’s refusal to appear on the only major Sunday morning political program—a moment many voters were waiting for—speaks volumes. Japan has walked this path before, and history shows it did not end well.

The political and social climate leading up to the pogrom against Koreans, Chinese, and other foreigners after the Great Kantō Earthquake of 1923 should serve as a stark reminder of what happens when ultra‑right forces dominate the national narrative. Fear, rumor, and nationalism combined with state-sanctioned prejudice, and thousands paid with their lives. That history is not distant; it is a warning.

People talk about inflation and the economy, but Japan cannot rebuild its economic strength without stable, constructive relations with China. That is simply a geopolitical reality. No amount of domestic political branding can change the fact that Japan’s prosperity is intertwined with regional diplomacy.

Sanseito’s messaging is full of buzzwords designed to resonate with ordinary people, but when you look closely, the ideological core is unmistakable. Their role within the broader political ecosystem resembles the relationship between hardline MAGA factions and the GOP in the United States—an uncompromising, ultra‑nationalist flank that pulls the mainstream further right while presenting itself as a grassroots movement.

Japan has been here before. The question now is whether the country chooses to remember its own history or repeat it.

The party of xenophobia and fear mongering.

Most Sanseitō voters are tired of 'silent invasions' like foreign land grabs and the exploitation of the welfare system. They want rules.

Maybe try listening to why people are hurting instead of hiding behind a dictionary and labeling everything you don't like as 'fear.

A far-right fringe party.

Takaichi's appeal with the right and adoption of Sanseito 's immigration policy direction has definitely taken some wind out of the Kamiya's sails.

They won those seats by default. Hirei 比例... Thanks to the weakness of Chudo and other minor parties. The absence of Komeito (due to their merger with DPJ under Chudo) is also another factor why some proportionate seats ended up with Sanseito. Victory? NO. But those 15 seats are like dangerous virus.

RE: Most Sanseitō voters are tired of 'silent invasions' like foreign land grabs and the exploitation of the welfare system. They want rules.

How are foreigners exploiting the welfare system?

The retirement and health care systems are a pay as you go.

In the jungle of Japanese nationalist politics right-wing chicken-hawk, Takaichi, will always be able to head the light-weight xenophobe, Kamiya, off at the pass because, although the Japanese say, they're all "racoons from the same hole", the LDP is the bigger beast and, as another old saying has it, "if you need to take shelter, get under the big tree", (LDP). The Japanese have not forgotten the lesson learned from their disastrous foray into Showa fascism so China and the world need not to fear this pipsqueak party's sudden mushrooming. The German AfD is quite another kettle of stinking fish.

Kamiya and supporters very unhappy. He had promised 40 seats, with a revision down to 20 as the bare minimum 3 days ago. And now it’s 13, with even Team Mirai taking part of the youth vote from him.

What a complete failure.

Japan is clearly steering to the xenophobic agenda throwing the book for it’s own problems to the 3% visible minority.

Unlike much of Europe they are trying to prevent a problem before it becomes too big.

Prevention is better than cure.

少しずつ

After Takaichi fails to deliver on the Sanseito policies she harnessed to siphon their votes Sanseito will surge in the next election.

from 2 to 13 to 50 to 300

While all envious complainers here have not any influence at all and have in sum 0 zero seats forever. lol

Kamiya and supporters very unhappy.

Not this supporter nor his family who all voted Sanseito. We understood that Takaichi was going to ride the wave that Sanseito created. We also have a good idea that Takaichi will not deliver on the wishes of Sanseito voters, but we are happy that Sanseito has a growing voice in the Diet to address the issues that concern us. And we're confident those seats will increase in the next election and subsequent elections.

We're very pleased with the outcome of this election. Which is either Takaichi will follow through with Sanseito's proposals or she will drop the ball and Sanseito will pick up the votes of the disgruntled voters next election. Either way, things are moving in the direction we'd hoped they would.

they went from 2 to 13 seats. Big deal

Yes, that IS a big deal...the tide is shifting

How are foreigners exploiting the welfare system?

The retirement and health care systems are a pay as you go.

A survey by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare covering about 150 municipalities found that only about 63 % of foreign residents required to pay National Health Insurance premiums actually did so through the end of 2024.

This means that roughly 37 % of foreign residents were delinquent (had not paid) their National Health Insurance premiums in that dataset.

How are foreigners exploiting the welfare system?

By registering ghost companies to receive free employee health care benefits.

By receiving unemployment and family support benefits, using “I can’t speak Japanese” as their reason.

By operating businesses without declaring income and paying taxes.

There are entire manuals and flowcharts on Chinese websites on how to abuse the system.

I don’t agree 100% with Sanseito, but I do agree that foreigners who abuse social benefit systems need to go.

Yes, there are many Japanese people who abuse the system as well. But just because your kid is a delinquent, it doesn’t mean you should adopt your neighbor’s delinquent child.

Beer guy....any references for these Chinese "manuals " on the web teaching how to rort the system.

I am assuming you do not speak Chinese so next assumption is your info is second or third hand....hearsay in legal terminology.

@Geeter M. Yes, and 7% of the entire population that is required to pay doesn’t. Which, if you do the math, means about 8 million people don’t pay. Of which about 1.5 million are foreigners and the remaining 6.5 million are Japanese. So, who’s really ripping off the system? Using percentages is misleading here (Kamiya is good at that). You’ve been duped, just like a fair number of my Japanese colleagues and friends.

This means that roughly 37 % of foreign residents were delinquent (had not paid) their National Health Insurance premiums in that dataset.

 While the Japanese people—who have built and maintained this country for generations—uphold their duty with a 93% National Health Insurance (NHI) payment rate and 7% delinquency rate, the data for foreign residents tells a different story: a staggering 37% delinquency rate.

Well-done Sanseito, most JN's agree, do not want more wage doom loop of falling real wages due to mass immigrant cheap labor, rather a productivity high tech wealth creation economy to spur JN Births and Hope!

Given the level of free exposure, I call this a fail.

Trends in Japan change quickly. People will tire of "OMG a foreigner did this" news, just as they tired of the NHK Party and all the others.

Trends in Japan change quickly. People will tire of "OMG a foreigner did this" news, just as they tired of the NHK Party and all the others.

They seemingly haven't tired of the LDP though.

They seemingly haven't tired of the LDP though.

Not this supporter nor his family who all voted Sanseito. We understood that Takaichi was going to ride the wave that Sanseito created. We also have a good idea that Takaichi will not deliver on the wishes of Sanseito voters, but we are happy that Sanseito has a growing voice in the Diet to address the issues that concern us. And we're confident those seats will increase in the next election and subsequent elections. 

We're very pleased with the outcome of this election. Which is either Takaichi will follow through with Sanseito's proposals or she will drop the ball and Sanseito will pick up the votes of the disgruntled voters next election. Either way, things are moving in the direction we'd hoped they would.

I admire your stiff upper lip when faced with such embarrassment. Unfortunately nothing I said is fiction and Kamiya himself has alluded to fraud due to such a vastly lower number of seats than he expected. He is that upset. You and your family will need to keep that enthusiasm in the coming years I would imagine.

Best of luck.

Takaichi got them good

But those 15 seats are like dangerous virus.

You say virus I say vaccine...and YES, it's 15...not 13

So, who’s really ripping off the system?

 37 % of foreign residents in the 150 municipalities surveyed

We're very pleased with the outcome of this election. Which is either Takaichi will follow through with Sanseito's proposals or she will drop the ball and Sanseito will pick up the votes of the disgruntled voters next election. Either way, things are moving in the direction we'd hoped they would.

Dont know who posted this, just quoted from post directly above mine but I just want to say just the same that this thinking is hopefully representative of sanseito's supporters

I admire your stiff upper lip when faced with such embarrassment. Unfortunately nothing I said is fiction and Kamiya himself has alluded to fraud due to such a vastly lower number of seats than he expected. He is that upset. You and your family will need to keep that enthusiasm in the coming years I would imagine.

He can be upset all he likes. I hope that spurs him on to be an aggressive and loud voice if and when Takaichi falters on the promises she made that echoed those of Sanseito's. Better an upset Kamiya than a complacent one.

Best of luck.

Thanks, I sense it will be

Sanseito gained traction because of their 'one-pattern' anti-foreigner policy, but people have had time to catch up on the rest of their mad lad policies.

Most of their candidates are obsessed with other weirdness like homeschooling, vaccines and other conspiracy crap. Kamiya will eventually drop too many mad bombs like his previous Jewish conspiracy obsession and historical revisionism and the party will merge into with other fringe parties.

Sanseito gained traction because of their 'one-pattern' anti-foreigner policy,

No, not ONLY immigration reform, but agriculural reform focused on raising the paltry 38% food self-sustainablity and education reform, prioritizing agricultural sciences, as well as more support for child rearing families. The "one-pattern" is what is being force fed you on these pages.

Japan reverting to type

Geeter Mckluskie

Today 01:16 pm JST

Sanseito gained traction because of their 'one-pattern' anti-foreigner policy,

> No, not ONLY immigration reform, but agriculural reform focused on raising the paltry 38% food self-sustainablity and education reform, prioritizing agricultural sciences, as well as more support for child rearing families. The "one-pattern" is what is being force fed you on these pages

Well I've only heard/read sanseito identified with antiforeigner policies.

They may have other things on their plate but I agree they only gained traction with the antiforeigner policy

Expanding the party and winning new seats is all the more impressive given the LDP’s sweeping victory. The election map looked like a red bloodbath. Even as every other party lost votes to the LDP, Sanseito made gains.

Take note. The message is resonating and growing.

They may have other things on their plate but I agree they only gained traction with the antiforeigner policy

Sanseito wants to massively boost Japan’s food self-sufficiency rate, aiming to double it within 10 years and ultimately reach 100 % by 2050, citing concerns about reliance on imports and national resilience.

Their plan includes increasing domestic production of rice and other crops, strengthening the livestock sector by improving feed self-sufficiency, domestic seed and fertilizer production, and mobilizing unused or abandoned farmland.

They also propose higher tariffs on imported agricultural products, expanded government food reserves (e.g., rice, wheat, soybeans), and stronger support for farmers’ incomes through direct payments, incentives, and expanded benefits like agricultural pensions.

In line with this, they promote organic and natural farming expansion, consumer support measures such as education/coupons to encourage purchase of domestically grown food, and use of local foods in school lunches.

School Food & Nutrition

Sanseito has launched a “Protect Japan’s Food and School Lunch Project” focused on improving the quality of school lunches, emphasizing local and nutritious ingredients, reducing additives, and supporting children who lack access to meals.

Education

On education, Sanseito calls for reforming the public education system to cultivate entrepreneurial, self-determined individuals rather than focus mainly on employment.

They want to support alternative inquiry-based schools, provide education that promotes pride in Japanese history and traditions, and reduce emphasis on rote testing — although they do not detail specific curriculum changes in the main summary

So now I guess, in addition to ldp and ally's already supermajory, the ldp can also expect the votes of sanseito reps

Geeter Mckluskie

Today 01:44 pm JST

They may have other things on their plate but I agree they only gained traction with the antiforeigner policy

> Sanseito wants to massively boost Japan’s food self-sufficiency rate, aiming to double it within 10 years and ultimately reach 100 % by 2050, citing concerns about reliance on imports and national resilience.

> Their plan includes increasing domestic production of rice and other crops, strengthening the livestock sector by improving feed self-sufficiency, domestic seed and fertilizer production, and mobilizing unused or abandoned farmland.

> They also propose higher tariffs on imported agricultural products, expanded government food reserves (e.g., rice, wheat, soybeans), and stronger support for farmers’ incomes through direct payments, incentives, and expanded benefits like agricultural pensions.

> In line with this, they promote organic and natural farming expansion, consumer support measures such as education/coupons to encourage purchase of domestically grown food, and use of local foods in school lunches.

> School Food & Nutrition

> Sanseito has launched a “Protect Japan’s Food and School Lunch Project” focused on improving the quality of school lunches, emphasizing local and nutritious ingredients, reducing additives, and supporting children who lack access to meals.

> Education

> On education, Sanseito calls for reforming the public education system to cultivate entrepreneurial, self-determined individuals rather than focus mainly on employment.

> They want to support alternative inquiry-based schools, provide education that promotes pride in Japanese history and traditions, and reduce emphasis on rote testing — although they do not detail specific curriculum changes in the main summary

Tldr, doesn't matter

As I've said I agree they only gained traction on the antiforeigner policies

Sanseito can realize those other things anyway as well if ldp have the same objectives also

They won those seats by default. Hirei 比例... Thanks to the weakness of Chudo and other minor parties. The absence of Komeito (due to their merger with DPJ under Chudo) is also another factor why some proportionate seats ended up with Sanseito. Victory? NO. But those 15 seats are like dangerous virus.

Anti-globalist, right Sanseito won votes away from the globalist, center-left parties? This is poppycock.

The center-right LDP torched all the other parties by capturing the center vote. But even as the LDP did this, they lost voters and seats on their right flank to Sanseito. Sanseito didn’t pick up anything from weak centrist and left-leaning parties. That’s what the LDP won. Sanseito’s gains were among people who want nationalist, center-right leadership, not the globalist, center-right status quo that the LDP offers. These were votes clawed away from the LDP.

mikeylikesit

Today 01:51 pm JST

They won those seats by default. Hirei 比例... Thanks to the weakness of Chudo and other minor parties. The absence of Komeito (due to their merger with DPJ under Chudo) is also another factor why some proportionate seats ended up with Sanseito. Victory? NO. But those 15 seats are like dangerous virus.

> Anti-globalist, right Sanseito won votes away from the globalist, center-left parties? This is poppycock.

> The center-right LDP torched all the other parties by capturing the center vote. But even as the LDP did this, they lost voters and seats on their right flank to Sanseito. Sanseito didn’t pick up anything from weak centrist and left-leaning parties. That’s what the LDP won. Sanseito’s gains were among people who want nationalist, center-right leadership, not the globalist, center-right status quo that the LDP offers. These were votes clawed away from the LDP.

Sanseito got votes and seats from ldp?

Ah good to know

Sohei Kamiya, his Sanseito party will not simply melt away,

Sanseito has secured 13 seats, this is not time to be lulled into a feeling of calm, self-satisfied contentment, unawareness of potential dangers.

The party, headed by upper house lawmaker Sohei Kamiya, fielded 190 candidates, the third-largest number after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's ruling Liberal Democratic Party and the newly created main opposition Centrist Reform Alliance.

Sohei Kamiya brand of toxic populism is here to stay.

Sanseito's financing is driven by individual contributions, membership fees, however leveraged, able to raise significant capital.

Sanseito's 2025 House of Councillors election campaign, secured ¥197 million around $1.3 million, from over 8,000 individuals through crowdfunding, heavy investment in digital marketing, extensive use of town hall meetings, intense study sessions for volunteers.

Remember, please be aware Sanseito is a registered political party eligible for public subsidies funded by Japan taxpayers

Don’t be surprised to witness Kamiya sporting, waving a orange “Sanae Takaichi” style manbag, beating the living daylights out of a set of taiko (太鼓),

The fact they were able to field so many candidates and are planning to field more later is impressive

Just unfortunate for them ldp has Takaichi this time

This article is poorly written and misleading. It completely lacks any form of serious analysis or research journalism. The fact is this party fielded over 150 candidates and only won 15 seats. That’s a poor showing by any measure. Second, the percentage share of the vote they received was 7.7%, which is half of what they achieved in the upper house elections last time. In other words, they lost ground. That is real data analysis and what should have been written instead of this misleading article. Poor journalism.

A harsh blow for Sanseito, which went from 7.5 million voters in the 2025 election to 3.9 million in 2026.

2025 election:

LDP: 12.8 million

Sanseito: 7.4 million

Conservative Party: 3 million

2026 election:

LDP: 21 million

Sanseito: 4.2 million

Conservative Party: 1.4 million

The reality is that Takaichi’s conservative shift has managed to bring back a large share of former voters who had moved to these two right-wing parties.

If it’s time to leave, someone let me know. I’d much rather leave on a plane than in a box.

And I’ll be taking my tax dollars (and those pension payments everyone seems to be so concerned about) with me.

2025 election:

LDP: 12.8 million

Sanseito: 7.4 million

Conservative Party: 3 million

2026 election:

LDP: 21 million

Sanseito: 4.2 million

Conservative Party: 1.4 million

The reality is that Takaichi’s conservative shift has managed to bring back a large share of former voters who had moved to these two right-wing parties.

My sentiments exactly. Why wasn’t the article written with this type of real analysis?

Present Japanese society where party who exploit discrimination to collect vote can increase seats, parties who oppose discrimination and respect human rights lose seats is hopeless.

As I've said I agree they only gained traction on the antiforeigner policies

You agree with someone who isn't me.

I don't agree that they ONLY gained traction on the antiforeigner policies.

@Geeter Mckluskie

It’s bizarre flex to use your hard-earned Japanese citizenship to vote for a party that thinks "Japanese-ness" is a blood type. If you’re a naturalized citizen voting for Sanseito, you aren’t just voting against your own interests, you’re voting to invalidate your own life story and the future of your kids.

Sohei Kamiya’s rhetoric isn't just conservative, it’s obsessed with "Japanese bloodlines." Have you read his book Sanseito Drill? He literally harps on the importance of preserving ancestral blood. He’s cited Mein Kampf as a reference for a reason because it’s the manual for racial hierarchy. To a party built on that ideology, your naturalization papers are just a piece of paper. You are "foreign blood," and your children are "mixed," which in their worldview means they are a dilution of the national soul.

You might think you’re one of the "good ones" because you followed the rules and naturalized. But Sanseito’s platform includes pushing for stricter naturalization requirements and even questioning the rights of first-generation citizens. They don’t want people like you participating in the system. They want to ensure the system is closed to anyone who isn't "ethnically" Japanese.

If Sanseito ever gets real leverage thanks to your votes, the environment your kids grow up in will shift from "internationally-minded" to "racially suspicious." You are handing power to people who would see your children as a mistake to be corrected rather than a future to be celebrated.

Supporting a party that uses COVID-19 conspiracies to mask xenophobia doesn't make you "more Japanese." It just makes you a collaborator in a movement that will eventually come for you too. When the "Japanese First" crowd finishes with the tourists and the guest workers, naturalized citizens are next on the list.

I don't know your previous nationality or race, but it doesn't really matter, you spent years trying to belong to this country. Why vote for the only people who will never let you?

To begin with, foreigners in Japan have an "obligation" to pay insurance premiums. This is required by law. Otherwise, they wouldn't have any "rights."

Do you mistakenly think that if Japanese people don't pay, foreigners don't have to?

Examples of foreigners abusing the welfare system:

Chinese and Koreans are common victims of fraudulent welfare applications.

There's a manual for this, and it's common for people to apply for welfare benefits a week after entering the country.

Depending on the local government, welfare benefits are often granted because the person doesn't speak Japanese.

The Japanese Supreme Court ruled that providing welfare benefits to foreigners is unconstitutional. Foreigners are abusing the system to receive benefits that should only be available to Japanese people. (Totaling $23 billion annually)

Health insurance reuse is common among Chinese people. They forge other people's health insurance, receive treatment at Japanese medical institutions, and then return home without paying.

In addition, there have been a series of cases where people enroll in health insurance in Japan and then fraudulently obtain maternity benefits or receive large amounts of benefits fraudulently ($5,000 per birth). There are also cases of claims for fictitious births. This is also in China.

If you look into it, you'll find that there are many different cases, which are problematic and would anger Japanese people.

neo:

Chinese and Koreans are common victims of fraudulent welfare applications.

Yes, victims. You said it.

Depending on the local government, welfare benefits are often granted because the person doesn't speak Japanese.

Sure, I believe ya.

Did I get downvoted for saying I would leave? Is it not the goal of Sanseito and his supporters for non-Japanese to go away? What exactly do you all want?

From 2 seats to 13 that's a big increase it means the people are looking for a change, they are tired of the same old song time to listen to the B side.

@M I totally disagree with the analysis the party fielded over 150 candidates and only won 15 seats. You might get censored because when the truth is written here it gets taken down.

This article is poorly written and misleading. It completely lacks any form of serious analysis or research journalism. The fact is this party fielded over 150 candidates and only won 15 seats. That’s a poor showing by any measure. Second, the percentage share of the vote they received was 7.7%, which is half of what they achieved in the upper house elections last time. In other words, they lost ground. That is real data analysis and what should have been written instead of this misleading article. Poor journalism.

Did I get downvoted for saying I would leave? Is it not the goal of Sanseito and his supporters for non-Japanese to go away? What exactly do you all want?

Sanseito has conceded that Japan needs skilled foreign talent, especially in farming (the average age of a Japanese farmer is 65). Sanseito proposed a cap of 5% on foreign residents. It's currently 3.2%, so they are fine with an increase, as long as that increase is in skilled, needed talent...not convenience store clerks and hotel cleaning staff etc.

It’s bizarre flex to use your hard-earned Japanese citizenship to vote for a party that thinks "Japanese-ness" is a blood type. If you’re a naturalized citizen voting for Sanseito, you aren’t just voting against your own interests, you’re voting to invalidate your own life story and the future of your kids.

I'm sorry, but I can't understand your way of thinking.

I'm sorry, but I can't understand your way of thinking.

He makes a perfectly valid point, a party that makes strong emphasis on considering first class only "pure blooded" Japanese it means you are voting for someone that consider you and your children second class citizens, the kind of people that can be disposed off when there is need to focus resources on the actual Japanese according to their arbitrary concept. This means you are voting against your own interests, something that unfortunately is quite common with extreme right wing parties. Endless examples are reported in the US, where immigrants that are forcefully deported and their citizenship revoked by the Trump administration voted for him, thinking he would only attack "real" foreigners.