Digital Minister Kono joins ruling party presidential election
TOKYO, Aug. 26 Kyodo - Digital Minister Taro Kono said Monday he will run in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election, touting his track record of pushing for reforms in his third bid to become Japan's prime minister.
The outspoken Kono, 61, who went close to securing the top job before losing out to incumbent Fumio Kishida in 2021, said the Sept. 27 race should be a place for its contenders to show a clear vision for Japan at the global stage.
He backpedaled on his earlier push to end Japan's reliance on nuclear power, saying that replacing old power plants with new ones is an option.
"I will implement reforms that are critical for the future of Japan," Kono said at a press conference, adding the party needs the public's trust to do so.
The leadership race will be held because Kishida is stepping down at the end of his current three-year term next month. The next LDP chief is almost certain to become premier as the LDP-Komeito coalition controls both houses of parliament.
Kono is known as a reform-minded ninth-term member of the House of Representatives and is often labeled a political maverick. Educated at Georgetown University in the United States, he has served as foreign and defense minister. He is fluent in English.
"It is going to be an election in which we need to clearly show the roles and responsibilities of Japan globally and put them into action," he said, as he cited aggressive moves by China and Russia, concerns about a Taiwan contingency and heightened tensions in the Middle East.
The presidential election will be the first since most of the ruling party's factions decided to disband after coming under intense scrutiny following a slush fund scandal. Kishida has expressed his belief that the LDP should undergo a period of renewal.
During the press conference, Kono said he will urge lawmakers who did not properly report political funds to return the relevant amounts, in response to the scandal engulfing the LDP, where some income from fundraising parties went unreported.
Kono belongs to a still-existing faction led by LDP Vice President Taro Aso, who has refused to dissolve it. One of the lawmakers who backed Kono's previous leadership bid has said he should leave the faction if he runs for party president.
In the 2021 LDP election, he was aligned with Shinjiro Koizumi and Shigeru Ishiba. Koizumi and Ishiba, who did not run in the election, are the public's preferred candidates to succeed Kishida, according to opinion polls, but the leader is chosen by LDP members and the party's sitting parliamentarians.
Former defense minister Ishiba, 67, announced his candidacy on Saturday, calling it his "last" attempt and the culmination of his 38-year political career. Meanwhile, 43-year-old Koizumi, a former environment minister, is also expected to join what is becoming a crowded race.
In other developments, industry minister Ken Saito, 65, has expressed his willingness to run and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, 63, the right-hand man of Kishida, is considering a bid.
Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, 71, is also preparing to declare her candidacy, indicating over the weekend that she has cleared the first hurdle to run by securing the backing of 20 LDP members.
Kishida has encouraged whoever is willing to succeed him to contest the election, including members of his Cabinet.
The election will likely see around 10 members vying for the LDP's top job, thus determining the country's next prime minister.
Former Economic Security Minister Takayuki Kobayashi, 49, was the first to announce his bid, ahead of Ishiba. Sanae Takaichi, 63, who took over the post from Kobayashi, is also expected to run.
==Kyodo
