A new wind blows through Japanese politics

Finally, Mr. Ishiba Shigeru won the race that was considered the most unpredictable in many years, with new, even strange things...

The race for the presidency of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has ended with the victory of Ishiba Shigeru, former Secretary General of the party. Thus, the 67-year-old politician has won in his fifth attempt and will almost certainly become the new Prime Minister of Japan early next week.

Mr. Ishiba Shigeru speaks at a press conference in Tokyo, Japan on September 27. (Source: Getty Images)

The race comes amid a political fund-laundering scandal that has rocked the party that has ruled Japan almost continuously since 1955, forcing most major factions within the party to disband, expelling several lawmakers from the party and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announcing he would not run again for party president.

This election has nine candidates, the most ever. Unlike this year’s White House race, when Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are likely to have only one public debate, multiple debates between LDP presidential candidates are being held in a short period of time, both in Tokyo and locally.

This is considered one of the main reasons for the “loss of power” of Mr. Koizumi Shinjiro, the long-time leading candidate. Many LDP supporters believe that the performance in the debates shows that Mr. Koizumi, the son of former Prime Minister Koizumi Junichiro, who was elected to the National Assembly at the age of 28 and is aspiring to become the youngest Japanese Prime Minister in history at the age of 43, is not yet “ripe” enough for this difficult position.

"I will trust the people, speak the truth with courage and honesty. I will do my best to make the country a safe place where people can live with smiles on their faces again." (Mr. Ishiba Shigeru's celebratory speech after the vote, September 27)

The absence of factions has created a special, new, even strange atmosphere. This may have partly led to the emergence of many candidates, when there is no longer an official "coordination" of faction leaders. That also contributed to making this the most unpredictable race in many years when until 1 day before the election, no Japanese news agency dared to predict which candidate would be the final winner, but could only confirm that a second round of voting would be held.

However, it is too early to say that the influence of factions and “elders” no longer exists. It is believed that the 10 minutes for the two candidates to speak before entering the second round had a great impact on the final result, not only because of the impact of the speeches, but also because during that time, there were messages “sent” by the “elders” to the National Assembly members. Some opinions say that the support of Prime Minister Kishida and the parliamentarians was decisive for Mr. Ishiba to win 189 parliamentary votes in the second round, thereby turning the tables against Ms. Takaichi Sanae, who had the highest number of votes in the first round.

The LDP presidency has a new owner. The Japanese parliament is expected to hold an extraordinary meeting tomorrow, October 1, to elect Mr. Ishiba Shigeru as the new Prime Minister, with the expectation of new vitality and new energy for the world's fourth largest economy.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/luong-gio-moi-thoi-qua-nen-chinh-tri-nhat-ban-288068.html