Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Prime Minister of Yemen’s Houthi Government Killed in Israeli Strike

2 days ago

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Signs Law Redrawing Congressional Maps

2 days ago

US Air Force will Offer Military Funeral Honors to Slain Capitol Rioter

3 days ago

US Republican Senator Joni Ernst Will Not Run for Re-Election, CBS News Reports

3 days ago

Wall Street Falls as Dell, Nvidia Drive Tech Losses

3 days ago

US Denies Visas to Palestinian Officials Ahead of UN General Assembly

3 days ago

Minneapolis Children Revealed Courage, Absorbed Fear During Church Shooting

3 days ago

Ford Recalls Nearly 500,000 Vehicles Over Brake Fluid Leak

4 days ago

Fresno-Bound Passenger Says Delta Attendant Slapped Him, Seeks $20M

4 days ago
Japan's Prime Minister Prepares to Step Down. Why, and What's Next?
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 1 year ago on
August 14, 2024

Prime Minister Kishida's surprise resignation sets the stage for a new LDP leader and potential shift in Japanese politics. (AP/Kyodo News)

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

TOKYO — Japan’s embattled Prime Minister Fumio Kishida surprised the country Wednesday by announcing that he’ll step down when his party picks a new leader next month.

His decision clears the way for his governing Liberal Democratic Party to choose a new standard bearer in its leadership election next month. The winner of that election will replace Kishida as both party chief and prime minister.

A new leader could help the party shake off scandals that have dogged Kishida’s government, and some see a chance for the country to select its first female prime minister.

Here’s a look at how the new leader will be chosen, and what it could mean.

What Happens Next?

Kishida announced plans not to run just days before the LDP is expected to set a date for its triennial leadership vote, which must take place in September.

Kishida will remain party president and prime minister until his successor is elected.

With the LDP in control of both houses of parliament, the next party leader is guaranteed to become prime minister.

Some political watchers say the next general election could come soon after the LDP has a fresh leader, who can choose to hold it at any time before the current term of the lower house ends in October 2025.

Why Is Kishida Stepping Down?

A series of local election losses earlier this year sparked calls within his party to have a new face to boost support before the next national election.

Kishida said a series of scandals has “breached” the public’s trust, and the party needs to demonstrate its commitment to change.

He said, “the most obvious first step is for me to bow out.”

The most damaging scandal centered on the failure of dozens of the party’s most influential members to report political donations, and resurfaced controversy over the LDP’s decades-old ties with the South Korea-based Unification Church.

How Will the Party Choose Its Next Leader?

Most of Japan’s voters won’t have a say as the LDP chooses a leader in a vote that’s confined to the party’s 1.1 million dues-paying members.

They’ll vote in a system that divides power between the party’s elected lawmakers and its membership at large, with each group getting 50% of the vote.

While LDP leadership votes were long seen as dominated by the party’s powerful factional leaders, experts say that’s less certain as all but one of the formal factions announced their dissolution in the wake of the party’s corruption scandals, in a move led by Kishida.

Who Are the Possible Candidates?

It’s not clear yet who’s leading the race to replace Kishida, with speculation focusing on several senior LDP members.

Three of those names belong to women, raising the possibility of a breakthrough in Japan’s male-dominated politics.

Experts say the LDP’s need to change its image could push it to choose a female prime minister. Only three women have run for the party’s leadership in the past, two of whom ran against Kishida in 2021.

Only 10.3% of the members of the lower house of Japan’s parliament are women, putting Japan 163rd for female representation among 190 countries examined in a report by the Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union in April.

How About the General Election?

The LDP’s troubles could spill into the general election, but Japan’s fractured opposition may have difficulty capitalizing on the situation.

Experts say voters may want to punish the LDP over its scandals, but don’t see opposition parties as viable alternatives.

The main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan has scored some victories in local elections this year, in part helped by the LDP scandals, but it has struggled to come up with policies that draw contrasts with the governing coalition.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

DON'T MISS

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

DON'T MISS

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

DON'T MISS

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

DON'T MISS

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

DON'T MISS

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

DON'T MISS

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

DON'T MISS

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

DON'T MISS

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

UP NEXT

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

UP NEXT

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

UP NEXT

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

UP NEXT

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

UP NEXT

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

UP NEXT

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

UP NEXT

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

UP NEXT

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

UP NEXT

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

UP NEXT

Judge Blocks Pillar of Trump’s Mass Deportation Campaign

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

16 hours ago

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

16 hours ago

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

16 hours ago

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

16 hours ago

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

16 hours ago

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

16 hours ago

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

1 day ago

Judge Blocks Pillar of Trump’s Mass Deportation Campaign

1 day ago

Classic Cars Will Still Need a Smog Test in California After Lawmakers Reject Jay Leno Bill

2 days ago

Visalia Driver Arrested for DUI After Multiple Crashes and Pedestrian Injured

2 days ago

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

A lightning-sparked wildfire, the Garnet Fire, in the Sierra National Forest has burned 18,748 acres in Fresno County and remains at 8% cont...

15 hours ago

Photo: USDA - Forest Service Tanker 40 at Fresno Air Attack Base. The Fresno County Garnet Fire in the Sierra National Forest has burned 18,748 acres and is 8% contained as crews make progress on containment lines while bracing for possible thunderstorms early this week. (Sam Wu/USFS)
15 hours ago

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

U.S. flag and Judge gavel are seen in this illustration taken, August 6, 2024. (Reuters File)
15 hours ago

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, August 31, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
16 hours ago

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

Demonstrators hold a banner during the 'March for Australia' anti-immigration rally, in Sydney, Australia, August 31, 2025. REUTERS/Hollie Adams
16 hours ago

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

President Donald Trump walks on the grounds of the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, U.S., August 30, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
16 hours ago

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

Activists Yasemin Acar, Greta Thunberg and Thiago Avila attend a press conference before the departure of the Global Sumud Flotilla, a humanitarian expedition to Gaza, at the port of Barcelona, Spain August 31, 2025. (Reuters/Eva Manez)
16 hours ago

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

National Guard troops wear gas masks during protests against federal immigration sweeps, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
16 hours ago

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

A view of tents sheltering Palestinians displaced by the Israeli military offensive, in Gaza City, August 23, 2025. (Reuters File)
16 hours ago

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

Search

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Send this to a friend