Vernacular papers report that the governing Liberal Democratic Party will elect its new party president on April 22. The winner of that vote will become prime minister and will then launch his or her Cabinet on the following day. These reports are attributed to multiple -- but all unidentified -- sources in the party. This may not be extraordinary as far as the LDP is concerned, but it is incredible that a schedule for picking a successor is unfolding in public while Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori continues to deny, at least officially, that he will step down.
The reasoning is easy to understand. It appears that most Liberal Democrats are no longer confident of their and the party's future if Mr. Mori continues to lead them. Yet no one in the party apparently dares to declare that he or she can restore the LDP's lost strength. They are well aware that the nation's political winds have been blowing strongly against established parties -- and, in particular, the LDP under Mr. Mori.
This hostile environment was evident, for example, in Sunday's Chiba gubernatorial election, in which Ms. Akiko Domoto, a former Upper House member with no party backing, scored a milestone victory over rivals supported by major parties. Her triumph followed similar upsets in the Nagano and Tochigi governorship races last October and November. With a crucial Upper House election set for July, the major parties -- especially the LDP -- face the urgent need to reconsider their campaign strategies. The key question is how to lure back voters disillusioned with party politics.