After Shigeru Ishiba’s resignation, who could be Japan’s next Prime Minister?

A party election is scheduled for October 4, with Ishiba staying on in a caretaker role until then.

Written by Express Web Desk

New Delhi | September 8, 2025 03:51 PM IST

3 min read

Japan PM Resigns: Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks during a news conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo, Japan, Sunday, Sept. 7. (Photo: AP)

With Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stepping down, Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has launched a leadership contest that will determine the country’s next leader. A party election is scheduled for October 4, Reuters reported, with Ishiba staying on in a caretaker role until then.

Ishiba, 68, announced at a press conference that he must take responsibility for a string of stinging election defeats. In less than a year in office, Ishiba has presided over his ruling coalition’s loss of majorities in both chambers of parliament, as voters expressed frustration over rising living costs.

He directed the Liberal Democratic Party, which has governed Japan for most of the post-war era, to conduct an emergency leadership contest, while confirming he would remain in office until a successor is chosen. “I would like to pass the baton to the next generation,” Reuters reported him saying.

The resignation comes as Japan finalised a trade agreement with the United States aimed at easing President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs. Trump said he was “a little bit surprised” by Ishiba’s move. Asked by reporters if he planned to visit Japan and South Korea later this year, he replied: “We’ll see.”

Attention now turns to who might succeed him.

Early candidates

Former foreign minister Toshimitsu Motegi was the first to confirm his candidacy, telling reporters: “The LDP is facing its worst crisis since its founding. We must unite quickly to tackle our serious challenges at home and abroad and move the country forward.”
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi also intends to run, according to a government source cited by Reuters.

Frontrunners

Sanae Takaichi, 64, is a veteran conservative who has held multiple cabinet posts. If elected, she would be Japan’s first female prime minister. Takaichi is known for her conservative stance, including advocating revisions to Japan’s pacifist postwar constitution. She frequently visits the Yasukuni shrine, which some of Japan’s Asian neighbours regard as a reminder of past militarism. She is distinguished by her outspoken criticism of Bank of Japan interest rate hikes and her push for increased spending to strengthen the fragile.
Shinjiro Koizumi, 44, the farm minister and son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. A Columbia University graduate, he is considered a reformist and would become Japan’s youngest modern-era leader if chosen.

Also Read: | How will Japan pick its next leader?

Both placed strongly in last year’s leadership contest, trailing Ishiba. “All indications are that it will come down to them facing off against each other,” Jeffrey Hall, a lecturer at Kanda University of International Studies, told Reuters.

Opposition prospects

Because the LDP no longer controls either chamber of parliament, there is also a theoretical path for an opposition leader to take power.

Among those floated are Yoshihiko Noda, a former prime minister now leading the Constitutional Democratic Party, and Yuichiro Tamaki, of the Democratic Party for the People, who has called for tax cuts, stronger defence and more nuclear energy.

(With inputs from Reuters)

From the homepage