In a night of drama, Shigeru Ishiba managed to win his party’s and, consequently, his country’s leadership, negating Japan its first female PM.
The elite power brokers of Japan’s governing party appeared to have taken public sentiment into account when they chose Shigeru Ishiba, 67, toIshiba, a former defence minister who has long been popular with rank-and-file members of the Liberal Democratic Party but less favoured by MPs, had run for the party leadership four times before finally attaining victory.
Hinting at the public’s loss of trust in the party, Ishiba said in his acceptance speech that he wanted to return to an LDP “that can hold free and open discussions,” and would be “fair and impartial” and “humble”.While past leadership contests have been staid affairs with a sense of preordination, Friday’s party election held genuine drama.
It was the most hotly contested race in years, with a total of nine candidates vying for the leadership. The Liberal Democratic Party has governed Japan for all but four years since 1955. Despite dissatisfaction over inflation, a slowing economy, labour shortages and the growing pressures of an ageing population, voters have shown little inclination it the party out of power. In policy pronouncements, the candidates did not offer hugely different visions of how they would govern.
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