Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has decided not to run for re-election as the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), stating that the party requires a “new start.”
The 67-year-old LDP veteran plans to resign as Prime Minister after the election of a new party leader in September.
Mr. Kishida’s popularity has declined following a corruption scandal within his party, amid challenges of rising living costs and a depreciating yen.
Last month, his approval ratings dropped to 15.5%, marking the lowest level for a Prime Minister in more than ten years.
Some members within the LDP question whether Mr. Kishida has the capability to lead the party to victory in the upcoming 2025 general election, given the LDP’s near-continuous hold on power since 1955.
Analysts have described the situation as a “once-in-a-generation” political crisis for Japan, as the LDP strives to clean up its image.
In a significant development last December, four LDP cabinet ministers resigned within two weeks due to a fundraising scandal involving the party’s most powerful faction.
Additionally, five senior vice-ministers and a parliamentary vice-minister from the same faction, previously led by the late PM Shinzo Abe, also resigned.
Criminal investigations have been initiated by Japanese prosecutors to determine whether numerous LDP lawmakers benefited from fundraising activities that failed to report millions of dollars on official party records.
This scandal emerged at a time when Japanese families are facing the highest surge in food prices in nearly fifty years.
Despite being the world’s fifth-largest economy, Japan is experiencing economic stagnation, with average incomes unchanged for 30 years and a rapidly aging population.
