Japanese Prime Minister Suga Withdraws from LDP Leadership Election... Expected to Resign by End of This Month (Update)

Term of LDP Presidential Candidate Until September 30
Party Meeting Emphasizes "Focus on COVID-19 Situation"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has declared that he will not participate in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) presidential election scheduled for the 29th of this month, indicating his intention to resign once his term as party president ends at the end of this month. It is reported that Prime Minister Suga expressed his desire to focus more on the current situation, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to NHK on the 3rd, Prime Minister Suga announced at the LDP's temporary executive meeting that he would not run in the LDP presidential election scheduled for the 29th of this month. At this meeting, Suga reportedly emphasized, "I will devote myself to COVID-19 measures and will not run in the presidential election."

Prime Minister Suga's term as LDP president lasts until the 30th of this month. His statement that he will not run in the presidential election is interpreted as his intention to resign from the prime minister position at the end of this month, given the political characteristic in Japan where the ruling party's president becomes the prime minister.

Earlier, predictions that Prime Minister Suga would not run in the presidential election emerged alongside a sharp drop in approval ratings. After the Tokyo Olympics closing, his approval rating had already fallen to the 20% range, and support for cabinet officials reportedly declined significantly. On the 1st, Digital Minister Takuya Hirai also expressed his support for former LDP Secretary-General Fumio Kishida, who is known as a major political rival of Prime Minister Suga.

Accordingly, it is expected that former Secretary-General Kishida, who declared his candidacy for the presidential election on the 26th of last month, is highly likely to become the next prime minister. Along with him, former Secretary-General Shigeru Ishiba is also reportedly considering whether to run, indicating that the competition in the upcoming presidential election is expected to intensify.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.