Japan: PM Suga backs Kono to succeed him

TOKYO: Japan’s outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga will back the popular minister in charge of the nation’s vaccination rollout, Taro Kono, to succeed him, Nippon News Network reported on Saturday.

Political manoeuvring was heating up among potential candidates and ruling party grandees on Saturday, a day after Suga’s surprise announcement that he was stepping down, ending a one-year term as prime minister that has seen his support crumble as Covid-19 surged.

Hours after Suga’s announcement, broadcaster TBS reported, without citing sources, that Kono intended to run for head of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Kono told reporters only that he wanted to consult party colleagues before deciding.

Suga is expected to stay on until his successor is chosen in the party election scheduled for September 29. The LDP leader will become prime minister given the party’s majority in parliament.

A former foreign and defence minister, Kono, 58, is popular among young voters after building support through Twitter, where he has 2.3 million followers - a rarity in Japanese politics, which is dominated by older men less adept with social media.

Former foreign minister Fumio Kishida has already thrown his hat in the ring, while several others have voiced their interest.

With no clear front-runner, the stance of Suga’s predecessor Shinzo Abe will be closely watched, given his influence inside the two largest factions of the Liberal Democratic Party and among conservative MPs, analysts say. Abe stepped down citing ill health last September after a record eight-year term.