(Update 2) Yamaguchi to Quit as Komeito Head

   Tokyo, Sept. 10 (Jiji Press)--Senior Japanese lawmaker Natsuo Yamaguchi said Tuesday that he plans to step down as chief of Komeito, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's coalition partner, when his current term expires later this month.
   It will be Komeito's first leadership change in 15 years. Yamaguchi, 72, became party leader in 2009 and has since served eight terms, making him the longest-serving Komeito chief since the party's relaunch in 1998.
   "A wave of generational change is approaching in the political world," he said at a press conference, referring to upcoming leadership elections at the LDP and the major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.
   "I have decided to hand the baton to the next generation," Yamaguchi said, adding, "Young and middle-ranking party members have grown, and it is time to prepare a new team."
   Komeito Secretary-General Keiichi Ishii, 66, is expected to be chosen as the successor to Yamaguchi at a party convention on Sept. 28. He is the only party member currently preparing a bid for the top post. The official campaign period for Komeito's leadership election starts on Sept. 18.

(2024/09/10-19:42)

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