The Democratic Party elected Upper House member Kohei Otsuka as new party president on Tuesday following the formal resignation of Seiji Maehara the previous day.

Otsuka, a 58-year-old former Bank of Japan official, is little known among the general public, but many party members urged him to run in the presidential election, apparently trusting his ability to manage party affairs.

Otsuka was the only candidate who had filed for the position by Tuesday's deadline. His election was then endorsed at a general meeting of DP members.