The race to choose the next Liberal Democratic Party leader officially kicked off Friday, with four contenders vying to become Japan’s 100th prime minister at a time when the country is tiptoeing its way out of the coronavirus pandemic and facing increasing security threats from neighboring countries.
Former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, former internal affairs minister Sanae Takaichi and Taro Kono, the minister in charge of the vaccine rollout, have put their names forward, while Seiko Noda, the party’s deputy secretary-general, made an 11th hour entry into the race the day before the campaign began after securing endorsements from 20 lawmakers.
Voting will take place on Sept. 29. During the less than two-week campaign period, the four contenders will take part in a marathon of debates, online town hall meetings and television appearances.