New Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader Shigeru Ishiba said he would call a national election on Oct. 27, assuming he is confirmed as Japan’s new prime minister today, taking advantage of a positive public reaction to his victory in Friday’s LDP leadership election.
“It is important that the new government be judged by the people as soon as possible,” Ishiba said in brief remarks to the press yesterday.
Ishiba is set to name party veterans to senior posts in his Cabinet as he broadly pursues continuity in economic, monetary and foreign policy. The new administration is officially launch after today’s vote in the LDP-dominated parliament.
Photo: AP / Kyodo News
The role of finance minister is set to go to Katsunobu Kato, a former top government spokesman, while Ishiba is to name Takeshi Iwaya, a former defense minister, as his foreign minister, public broadcaster NHK and other Japanese media reported.
Ishiba’s decision to call a quick election is a move to win a mandate for his administration while there is an uptick in voter support. A survey by the Mainichi Shimbun found that 52 percent of the public were optimistic about the new government.
The surprise victory by Ishiba in the LDP leadership battle reflects a bid by the party to win back public trust after a fund-raising scandal and inflation woes sent the approval ratings of outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plummeting.
Ishiba has consistently been one of the most popular leadership candidates among the public. His distance from previous administrations gives him a cleaner image to project in an election.
The ruling LDP is unlikely to be ousted in any near-term national vote, given the relatively low support ratings of other parties. The main opposition party has just replaced its leader to try and revive its flagging support levels.
Tokyo stocks yesterday closed down more than 3 percent as investors factored in the sharp rebound in the yen that followed Ishiba’s surprise win over Bank of Japan (BOJ) easing advocate Sanae Takaichi.
A Takaichi victory was seen as likely to slow down or put the brakes on interest rate hikes by the central bank, putting pressure on the currency to weaken.
During his leadership campaign, the 67-year-old Ishiba expressed support for the BOJ’s policy normalization.
In a television interview on Sunday he said it was important to keep monetary conditions accommodative, suggesting there was no rush to raise borrowing costs.
“I don’t think we should be talking about interest rates in a situation where we still can’t say for sure that deflation has been defeated,” Ishiba said during an interview with Fuji TV.
Ishiba has said his economic priorities are to defeat deflation and raise wages, while encouraging revitalization of Japan’s rural regions.
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