A party donations scandal in Japan’s long-running ruling party, the LDP, has consequences. Party leader Kishida no longer wants to run for re-election. This means that the G7 country will soon have a new head of government.
Tokyo – Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is in the polls at a low point, is giving up. He will not run for re-election in the election for chairman of his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in September, Kishida said. The head of the party, which has ruled almost continuously for decades, is usually also the prime minister. Kishida is thus taking responsibility for a political donations scandal in which some of the inner-party power groups are involved. He has come under increasing criticism for the way he handled it. The approval ratings for his government, which took office in October 2021, subsequently fell below 30 percent.
Under Kishida, Japan undertook a historic change in its security strategy in response to China’s quest for power and the threat from North Korea and decided on a massive military build-up. In a departure from the previously exclusively defense-oriented security doctrine, the US ally wants to put itself in a position to eliminate enemy missile sites in the future. The defense budget is increasing significantly.
Kishida changed Japan’s security strategy
The change of course came in the face of a security environment that the government describes as the “most serious and complicated” since World War II. China’s military presence in the region represents “the greatest strategic challenge.” Japan’s protector, the United States, put it similarly. Despite his unpopularity, Kishida has long been striving to secure re-election in the race for the leadership of his party. But within the LDP, calls for his resignation have recently become louder and louder.
Following Kishida’s announcement of his resignation, names of possible successor candidates are already circulating in the Japanese media. These include former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, reform-minded Digital Minister Taro Kono, LDP Secretary General Toshimitu Motegi and Minister for Economic Security Sanae Takaichi. Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and former Minister for Economic Security Takayuki Kobayashi are also among those who could enter the race. dpa
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