JAPAN’S incoming prime minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Monday (Sep 30) that he will call a general election that will take place on Oct 27, following his victory in one of the closest-ever leadership races for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
The poll, which will come a year early and ahead of the US presidential election in early November, will decide which party controls parliament’s lower house. Lawmakers there will meet on Tuesday to confirm him as the country’s next prime minister.
“It is important for the new administration to be judged by the people as soon as possible,” Ishiba said at a press conference at LDP headquarters in Tokyo.
Japanese shares fell more than 4 per cent in early trading on Monday as the yen strengthened and Japanese government bonds jumped in reaction to the leadership win by Ishiba, who is seen as a monetary policy hawk.
Ishiba has started to pick government and party officials who will contest the upcoming general election with him.
So far, those include two rival candidates in the leadership race – Katsunobu Kato as finance minister and Yoshimasa Hayashi to stay on as chief cabinet secretary, a pivotal post that includes the role of top government spokesman.
Former defence chief Takeshi Iwaya, who is a close ally of Ishiba, will take over as foreign minister. Gen Nakatani will return to the defence ministry, a position he held in 2016.
Yoji Muto, a former junior minister, will take charge of the economy, trade and industry ministry, a source told Reuters.
Not included in his picks, however, is Sanae Takaichi, the hardline conservative he beat by 215 votes to 194 on Friday in the closest leadership election in almost 70 years.
Takaichi’s absence could make it difficult for Ishiba to manage a fractious ruling group roiled by scandals that have sapped its public support.
Media reports that Takaichi has declined a post “could point to a weakness in Ishiba’s support base, which could cause him problems going forward,” said Hiroshi Shiratori, a political science professor at Hosei University in Tokyo.
Ishiba picked another rival, Shinjiro Koizumi, as his election campaign chief, along with former prime minister Yoshihide Suga, a Koizumi backer, who is the party’s new vice-president. Both joined him at his press conference on Monday.
Ishiba, 67, won the LDP leadership race on his fifth attempt with strong backing from rank-and-file members.
He is however, considered something of troublemaker by many of his parliamentary colleagues for often defying party policy. Just before his runoff election against Takaichi, he apologised to LDP lawmakers for his “shortcomings”. REUTERS
