A Look At Top Candidates Running For Japanese Prime Minister

Apart from the economy, the new leader will also have to balance relations with the U.S., Japan’s sole treaty ally, and China, its biggest trading partner, as the two powers are at loggerheads on various issues.

Fumio Kishida (Photo: The Japan Times)

Fumio Kishida, 64, former foreign minister

Having long been seen as a potential successor to Japan's longest-serving Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida won the presidency of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in his second bid for the party leadership. As foreign minister, Kishida helped realize a historic 2016 visit by U.S. President Barack Obama to the atomic-bombed Hiroshima, his constituency, and struck an agreement with South Korea in 2015 to resolve "finally and irreversibly" the issue of comfort women, according to Mainichi.

Fumio Kishida's policies include:

Stimulus package: Says tens of trillions of yen must be spent immediately, without being more specific

Monetary: Retains easing and the 2% inflation target

Energy: Backs restarting idled nuclear reactors to help achieve net-zero carbon emissions goal by 2050

China: Accused Beijing in a YouTube discussion this month of wanting to export “its authoritarian system around the world” and said Japan needed to stand up for “universal values.” Also has said Taiwan would be the “next big problem” facing the government

Taro Kono (Photo: The Japan Times)

Taro Kono, 58, administrative reform minister

Taro Kono was born on 10 January 1963, in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa. In 1982, he went to the United States, where he attended Georgetown University. Kono has previously served as foreign and defense ministers and his fluency in English would be a stark contrast to Suga and almost every other Japanese premier who has shown limited proficiency in the language, according to Bloomberg.

Kono has been the top choice among the public to be the next premier, which could help the LDP as it faces a national election just weeks after picking its new leader. His policies include:

Stimulus package: Supports emergency spending, but has given no estimate on the amount, saying content more important than size

Monetary: Inflation target of 2% difficult to hit. Growth spurs inflation, not the other way around. Previously called on the Bank of Japan to map out an exit from aggressive easing

Energy: Partially backtracked on opposition to nuclear power, saying it’s realistic to restart nuclear plants if safety can be confirmed as a part of moves to achieve the country’s climate goals

China: Concerned about Beijing’s rise and has said Japan should join the “Five Eyes” intelligence grouping among Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the U.K., and the U.S.

Sanae Takaichi (Photo: Reuters)

Sanae Takaichi, 60, former internal affairs minister

The 60-year-old senior lawmaker, aiming to become the country's first female prime minister, has faced criticism in the past from China and South Korea for her frequent visits to the Yasukuni shrine, a war-linked shrine in Tokyo seen by the neighboring countries as a symbol of Japan's past militarism. Takaichi, known for her close ties with former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, has advocated amending the Constitution so Japan can possess "national defense forces," according to Kyodo News.

After winning her first seat as a House of Representatives member in 1993, Takaichi joined the now-defunct New Frontier Party, later switching to the LDP.

As cited by Bloomberg, Sanae Takaichi backs these following policies:

Stimulus package: Supports nimble, decisive spending during a crisis, without giving a figure. Considers extra bond issuance fine

Monetary: Prioritizes the 2% inflation target over the primary budget balance

Energy: In favor of nuclear power and concerned about the problems of solar power, such as the difficulty of recycling panels

China: Backs having the U.S. bring intermediate-range missiles to its U.S. bases in Japan, despite Beijing having said any country accepting such a deployment would face retaliation

Seiko Noda (Photo: The Japan Times)

Seiko Noda, 61, former internal affairs minister

Seiko Noda, the executive acting secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, is known as a strong-willed lawmaker who has professed determination to become the first female prime minister of Japan, according to Kyodo News.

Noda, 61, was among the LDP lawmakers who pushed for insurance coverage of fertility treatment and other support. She gave birth to a boy at the age of 50 in 2011 through in vitro fertilization using a donated egg in the United States. A graduate of Sophia University and granddaughter of a former construction minister, she has served as the minister of internal affairs and communications as well as consumer affairs minister, among other roles.

Seiko Noda's policies are described as:

- Wants to provide a flat-rate handout to all working people

- Favors cutting the number of seats in parliament

- Supports Taiwan’s entry into the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership

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