Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe hinted Wednesday he will officially announce his candidacy to succeed Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party after the mid-July summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Despite his high rating in opinion polls as a possible candidate to become the next prime minister, Wednesday was the first time Abe, the government's top spokesman, indicated he planned to run for the post.
Abe had been dodging the question, saying his duty was to support Koizumi's reforms as chief Cabinet secretary.