Prominent LDP Members Eye Leadership Post after Ishiba

   Tokyo, July 27 (Jiji Press)--With Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's resignation widely seen as inevitable, prominent members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are beginning to step up their efforts to succeed him.
   Former LDP policy chief Sanae Takaichi, who came in first in the first round of voting in last September's party leadership election but lost to Ishiba in the subsequent runoff, is said to have a strong desire to become the country's first female prime minister.
   Before the LDP suffered a historic defeat in this month's House of Councillors election, Takaichi said in her home turf in Nara Prefecture, western Japan, on July 18, "I've made up my mind."
   On Wednesday, after the election, Takaichi held talks with about 10 lawmakers close to her, including Upper House member Hiroshi Yamada, at a residential facility for House of Representatives lawmakers in Tokyo.
   She also met with former Prime Minister and current LDP supreme adviser Taro Aso, who heads the party's only remaining faction.

(2025/07/27-17:04)

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