Tokyo: Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida announced that he will step down as ruling party leader in September, media reported on Wednesday.
“Politics cannot function without public trust,” Kishida said in a press conference on Wednesday to announce his decision not to seek re-election as the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader.
I will now focus on supporting the newly elected LDP leader as a rank-and-file member of the party,” he said, as reported by Reuters.
Kishida has been under scrutiny within the party for his handling of a political fundraising scandal involving some of its factions. The approval ratings for Kishida’s Cabinet, launched in October 2021, have plunged to the 20 per cent range in the wake of the scandal.
Despite his unpopularity, Kishida had been keen to secure re-election in the leadership race. But calls have been growing within the LDP for him to resign amid fears over how the LDP would fare in the next general election under his leadership, political analysts said.
So far, former Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is popular among the public, has expressed his intention to run in the LDP presidential election.
Ishiba previously served as LDP Secretary General, the Number 2 figure within the ruling party. Digital Minister Taro Kono, a reform-minded maverick and social media-savvy lawmaker, has informed LDP Vice- President Taro Aso, a former Prime Minister, that he intends to run in the race, according to sources.
LDP Secretary General Toshimitu Motegi, Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi, former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and former Economic Security Minister Takayuki Kobayashi are also among those who may join the race.
Kishida was elected party president in September 2021 for a three-year term and won a general election shortly afterwards.