Japan Foreign Minister Announces Bid for LDP Presidency; Yoko Kamikawa to Make First Attempt to Lead Party

The Yomiuri Shimbun

17:18 JST, September 11, 2024

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa on Wednesday announced she would run for president of the Liberal Democratic Party, at a press conference in Tokyo.

Campaigning will begin on Thursday, and voting will take place on Sept. 27.

Kamikawa is the second female candidate and the ninth person overall to officially announce their candidacy. This is much more than the previous record of five candidates since 1972, when would-be presidents became required to secure endorsements from LDP lawmakers in order to run.

“As prime minister, I will not run away from difficult issues, and will build a new Japan with the public,” Kamikawa, 71, said at the press conference.

This is the first time for Kamikawa to run for LDP president. She was elected seven times to the House of Representatives, mainly from Shizuoka Constituency No. 1, and has served as justice minister three times and state minister in charge of measures on the declining birth rate.

Former Internal Affairs and Communications Minister Seiko Noda, 64, has given up on running for LDP president, as it appears unlikely she will secure the necessary endorsements from lawmakers.

Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, who has already announced his candidacy, told reporters in Nagaoka, Niigata Prefecture, on Wednesday that Noda would be one of the members endorsing him.