TOKYO, (TDI): Japan’s new prime minister will be officially elected by parliament on October 1, following next week’s leadership contest, according to an announcement from a ruling party official on Wednesday.
Current polls show that three frontrunners have emerged among the nine candidates vying to succeed Fumio Kishida as the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in the internal elections set for September 27.
The frontrunners include former LDP secretary general Shigeru Ishiba, 67; economic security minister Sanae Takaichi, 63; and Shinjiro Koizumi, 43, the son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
As the LDP has governed Japan for nearly uninterrupted decades and holds a majority in parliament, the winner of the party election is expected to become the next prime minister.
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Yasukazu Hamada, an LDP legislator responsible for parliamentary affairs, informed his opposition counterpart that the party intends to convene a parliamentary session on October 1 to elect the new prime minister.
The opposition party has also agreed to this date, which will be officially confirmed by the government on Monday.
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Kishida, whose three-year tenure was marred by scandals, public dissatisfaction over rising prices, and declining approval ratings, announced last month that he would step down.
