After serving just one year in office, Yoshihide Suga, the outgoing Prime Minister of the party, is being replaced by Kishida.
Kishida, the new leader of Liberal Democratic Party is likely to be elected as the next prime minister in parliament where his party and the coalition partner control both the houses.
Kishida declared victory in his speech vowing to address Japan’s “national crisis” which included COVID-19. The economy was also hit by the pandemic, declining birthrate and population, as well as pursue “important issues regarding Japan’s future” with a vision for an “open Indo-Pacific free and open to all” to counter China’s assertiveness.
After finishing just one vote ahead, Kishida defeated Taro Kono, the popular vaccines minister, in a runoff.
His victory in the second round, 257-170, showed that a consensus-building Kishida won more support from party heavyweights. They apparently chose stability over the change advocated Kono (known as a maverick reformist).
The party is now under pressure to improve its high-handed reputation. Suga angered the public with his handling of the pandemic, insistence on holding the Summer Olympics at Tokyo despite the escalating infections, and Suga’s insistence that the party hold the Olympics.
The Liberal Democratic Party, a long-standing conservative party, must quickly reverse the decline in public support before the next two-month-long lower house elections.
Kishida stated that he had heard complaints from voters about being ignored over the past year. In his speech, he stated that he felt the crisis in democracy. Fumio, Kishida has a unique ability to listen to people. Together with you, I will make every effort to create a more open LDP.
Former foreign minister, 64 years old, was once viewed as an indecisive moderate. However, he has become a security and diplomat hawk in recent years as he sought the support of influential conservatives to win party election.
Kishida called for an increase in Japan’s defense budget and capability, and promised to confront China in tensions over Taiwan, which China claims as its territory.
Concerning the economy, Kishida called for “new capitalism” in growth and distribution to close the income gap between the rich and poor. These gaps have only widened under Japan’s longest-serving leader Shinzo Abe and only got worse during the pandemic.
He also promised to encourage clean energy technology in order to turn the climate change measures into economic growth, and proposed a generous package for economic recovery.
According to Yu Uchiyama (a political science professor at University of Tokyo), there is little hope for significant changes in key security and diplomatic policies under the new leader.
Kishida supports closer Japan-U.S. security relations and partnerships with like-minded democracies across Asia and Europe. This is partly to counter China’s nuclear-armed North Korea.
Wednesday’s vote was meant to test whether Abe’s influence can be overcome by the party. His influence in politics and party affairs has mostly muzzled different views and shifted party to the left.
Kishida called for party reforms, including limiting executive terms. However, he is seen as someone who could prolong an era unusually stable in politics amid concerns that Japan might return to “revolving door leadership.”
Michael Green, senior vice-president for Asia at The Center for Strategic and International Studies told a briefing by telephone that concern is not about individuals, but stability in Japanese politics. He said, “It’s about whether we are entering a period of instability in Japanese politics and short-term prime minstership.” It makes it difficult to progress on the agenda.
Green stated that voters will be watching to see if Kishida is easily influenced by power politics within his party or if they are attuned with the public.
Suga will be leaving Japan one year after he was appointed as Abe’s pinch hitter. He suddenly resigned due to health issues, ending nearly eight years of his leadership, which is the longest period in Japan’s constitution.
Suga lost to Kishida in the 2020 party leadership race. This was a deal that party heavyweights had already determined before the vote. Kishida is a third-generation Hiroshima politician and has earned a reputation as politely and honestly among his colleagues lawmakers.
In 1993, he was elected for the first time to the parliament. He was an advocate for nuclear disarmament and accompanied former President Barack Obama on his 2016 visit to Hiroshima. This is the same city that was destroyed in the U.S.atomic bombings of the last days of World War II.
Abe’s foreign minister, he reached a 2015 deal with South Korea to end a bilateral dispute over World War II women sexually abused in Japan’s wartime military. This is part of a legacy that continues to hinder relations between the two countries.
The banker-turned-lawmaker enjoys drinking sake and is a staunch supporter of his hometown professional baseball team, Hiroshima Carp.