It is expected that a race for Japan's national leadership will start after Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda hosts the summit meeting of the Group of Eight industrialized nations in Toyako, Hokkaido, in July.
As the popularity of Fukuda dwindles, many political insiders think it will be impossible for him to dissolve the Lower House and hold general elections. That's because the Liberal Democratic Party leadership is haunted by the nightmare of the resounding defeat it suffered in last July's Upper House election under Fukuda's immediate predecessor, Shinzo Abe. The general consensus following the loss was that the party is unable to win in the next Lower House election under the incumbent prime minister.
Several prominent figures within the ruling LDP are mentioned as likely to succeed Fukuda in the not too distant future. Among them are Taro Aso, former foreign minister who lost to Fukuda in the LDP presidential election last year, and Yuriko Koike, former defense minister who some hope will become Japan's first female head of the government.