Ishiba elected Japan's ruling party leader, to become new PM

Shigeru Ishiba on Friday won Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) presidential election, virtually ensuring that he will become the country's next prime minister, reported Xinhua.

The 67-year-old lawmaker, in his fifth attempt to lead the party, was elected as the new LDP president by securing 215 votes in a runoff to defeat his female contender Sanae Takaichi, who received 194 votes.

At a press conference following his election, the veteran politician vowed to give his "full effort" to rebuild trust and unity within the LDP, calling for a party that is humble, fair, and transparent, where rules are followed, and the public can hold leaders accountable.

Regarding the potential dissolution of the House of Representatives, Ishiba indicated that a national election is necessary but emphasized the importance of debating key issues with opposition parties before making any decision.

Stressing measures to accelerate real wage growth and boost consumer spending, he also highlighted Japan's population decline as a major concern, reiterating his focus on regional revitalization.

As the LDP-led coalition constitutes a majority in both chambers of the parliament in Japan, Ishiba, as the new party chief, is almost certain to be elected prime minister in the extraordinary Diet session scheduled to be held on Oct. 1, succeeding the incumbent Fumio Kishida, who is not seeking re-election due to mounting criticism over the LDP slush fund scandal.

Working as Kishida's successor, Ishiba will be tasked with restoring public trust in politics after the scandal involving unreported income and misuse of political funds, which led to the indictment of several lawmakers and damaged public support for the current government.

In the first round of voting on Friday afternoon, LDP parliamentarians cast 367 votes, while another 368 votes were allotted to rank-and-file members. Ishiba, winning 154 votes, entered the runoff vote round with Takaichi who took the lead at 181 votes.

In the runoff voting, the LDP lawmakers cast the same number of votes, but the rank-and-file members' votes were reduced to one for each of the LDP's 47 prefectural chapters.

Shigeru, who served as party secretary-general and defense minister in the past, won the final race with advantages in the votes from both LDP parliamentarians and local chapters.

43-year-old Shinjiro Koizumi, who is former environment minister and son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, lost out in the nine-candidate race in the first round of voting earlier in the afternoon.