Yoshihiko Noda, taking over from Naoto Kan as president of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, was elected the 95th prime minister on Aug. 30. He is the 18th prime minister in 25 years and the third since the DPJ came to power two years ago.
With prime ministers changing so fast in recent years, it is no wonder that the nation has failed to come out with any long-range policy for economic structural reforms and any stable strategy concerning foreign affairs and that the Kan Cabinet's support rate dipped to a level between 10 percent and 20 percent in its latest period in office.
With the DPJ as well as other parties losing their capabilities as political parties, people's confidence in politics has waned and nonpartisan people have almost become a majority. Naturally, the question arises as to whether the new Cabinet will be able to help restore the public's trust in politics and pave the way for building a "New Japan" to live up to people's expectations in the wake of the March 11 Great East Japan Earthquake.