Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda put a damper on the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential race when he dropped out of the running. Who will succeed Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in September?
Now it has become certain that Defense Agency Director General Fukushiro Nukaga, who had hinted at a candidacy, will not run. The second most powerful LDP faction, headed by former health minister Yuji Tsushima, decided not to field him. Mr. Nukaga is expected to accept the decision.
Without Mr. Nukaga's participation, there is no candidate to fill the void left by Mr. Fukuda, who was regarded as a strong rival to the front-running Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe. As a result, the likelihood of lively and heated policy debate among the candidates has declined.