‘Old school’ Kishida faces challenge to inspire Japan
Al Jazeera
New LDP leader expected to be installed as prime minister on Monday with elections just weeks away.
Tokyo, Japan – Fumio Kishida is set to become Japan’s next prime minister after securing victory in the race to lead Japan’s ruling party, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), but while the ‘old school’ politician might have won his party’s backing, analysts say winning over the public will be far harder.
Kishida, 64, beat the more popular administrative reform and vaccines minister, Taro Kono, in a second-round runoff by 257 votes to 170. The two women in the race, the hard-right Sanae Takaichi and the more liberal Seiko Noda, lost out in the first round of voting.
With the rise of the soft-spoken Hiroshima politician to the top job, the party has opted for the continuity candidate and a low-key leader.