2021 Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) leadership election

The 2021 Liberal Democratic Party leadership election was held on 29 September 2021 to elect the next President of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan and Prime Minister of Japan. Kishida was elected to lead the party, and assumed the premiership on 4 October. He led the party into the 2021 Japanese general election.^[1]

2021 Liberal Democratic Party leadership election

← 2020 29 September 2021^[1] 2024 →

Candidate Fumio Kishida Taro Kono Leader's seat Rep for Hiroshima-1st Rep for Kanagawa-15th First round 256 (33.6%) 255 (33.4%) Runoff 257 (60.2%) 170 (39.8%)   Candidate Sanae Takaichi Seiko Noda Leader's seat Rep for Nara-2nd Rep for Gifu-1st First round 188 (24.6%) 63 (8.2%) Runoff Eliminated Eliminated

Second round results First round results

President before election Yoshihide Suga Elected President Fumio Kishida

President of the LDP and Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced on 3 September that he would not run for his re-election, amid low approval ratings and media reports of dissension within the party.^[2] Suga was initially elected President of the LDP in 2020 to serve the rest of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's third and final term after Abe resigned in August 2020 due to health issues.

Former Minister for Foreign Affairs Fumio Kishida won the election in a second round runoff, defeating opponent Taro Kono, the incumbent Minister for Administrative Reform and Regulatory Reform. Kishida's victory was driven by strong support among LDP Diet members, while Kono led polling prior to the election and won the most votes from dues-paying party members. Kishida was confirmed by the Diet as Japan's 100th Prime Minister on 4 October 2021.^[3]

Background

Shinzo Abe was elected President of the LDP three consecutive times in 2012, 2015 and 2018 following a rule change in 2017 which extended the office's term limit to three consecutive terms instead of two.^[4] He successfully led the LDP to three consecutive general election victories in 2012, 2014 and 2017 and assumed the premiership as the longest-serving Prime Minister in Japanese history.^[5] On 28 August 2020, Abe suddenly announced that he would resign as Prime Minister and LDP President following a resurgence of his ulcerative colitis.^[6]

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga won the party's special election in September 2020 to serve the remainder of Abe's term as LDP President, with Suga subsequently entering office as Prime Minister on 16 September.^[2] Suga had initially announced that he would run for re-election for a full term as LDP President in advance of the 2021 general election.^[7] On 3 September 2021, Suga reversed course and announced that he would not run for re-election as LDP President, amid poor approval ratings and media reports of internal dissension within the party regarding Suga's leadership.^[2]

Suga's withdrawal from the race as well as the fact that most of the LDP's internal factions have declined to endorse a specific candidate led to the election being described as wide open and unpredictable.^[8]

Election procedure

The election process for the President of the LDP is established in the "Rules for the Election of President of the Party".^[9] In order to officially qualify as a candidate in the election, a candidate must be an LDP member of the National Diet and must receive a nomination from at least 20 fellow LDP Diet members.^[9]

The LDP selects its leader via a two-round election involving both LDP members of the Diet and dues-paying party members from across Japan.^[10] In the first round, all LDP members of the Diet cast one vote while party member votes are translated proportionally into votes equaling the other half of the total ballots.^[10] If any candidate wins a majority (over 50%) of votes in the first round, that candidate is elected President.^[10]

If no candidate receives a majority of votes in the first round, a runoff is held immediately between the top two candidates.^[10] In the runoff, all Diet members vote again while the 47 prefectural chapters of the LDP get one vote each, with the result of the latter votes determined using the first round results of party members in each prefecture.^[10] The candidate who wins the most votes in the runoff is then elected President.^[10]

The party's secretary general can decide to organise the election with the rule of the second round only, as was decided in 2020, but didn't as for 2021.^[11]

Candidates

Declared

Candidate(s)		Date of birth	Current position	Party faction	Electoral district	Reference(s)
Fumio Kishida		(1957-07-29)29 July 1957 (age 64)	Member of the House of Representatives (since 1993) Previous offices held Minister of Foreign Affairs (2012–2017) Acting Minister of Defense (2017) Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party Policy Research Council (2017–2020) 2020 Liberal Democratic leadership candidate	Kōchikai (Kishida)	Hiroshima 1st district	^[12]
Sanae Takaichi		(1961-03-07)7 March 1961 (age 60)	Member of the House of Representatives (since 2005) Previous offices held Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications (2014–2017; 2019–2020) Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party Policy Research Council (2012–2014)	None (Widely regarded as an ally of Shinzo Abe)^[13]	Nara 2nd district	^[13]
Taro Kono		(1963-01-10)10 January 1963 (age 59)	Minister for Administrative Reform and Regulatory Reform (since 2020) Minister for COVID-19 Vaccinations (since 2021) Member of the House of Representatives (since 1996) Previous offices held Minister of Defense (2019–2020) Minister for Foreign Affairs (2017–2019) Chair of the National Public Safety Commission (2015–2016)	Shikōkai (Asō)	Kanagawa 15th district	^[14]
Seiko Noda		(1960-09-03)3 September 1960 (age 61)	Member of the House of Representatives (since 1993) Previous offices held Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications (2017–2018) 2018 Liberal Democratic leadership candidate	None	Gifu 1st district	^[15]

Withdrawn

Candidate(s)		Date of birth	Notable positions	Party faction(s)	District(s)	Announced	Withdrew	Reference(s)
Yoshihide Suga		(1948-12-06)6 December 1948 (age 73)	Prime Minister (since 2020) Member of the House of Representatives (since 1996) Other offices Chief Cabinet Secretary (2012–2020) Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications (2006–2007)	None	Kanagawa 2nd district	17 July	3 September (endorsed Kono)^[16]	^[7]^[17]

Declined

• Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister (2006–2007, 2012–2020), Member of the House of Representatives, (1996–present) Chief Cabinet Secretary (2005–2006)^[18] (endorsed Takaichi)^[19]
• Taro Aso, Prime Minister (2008–2009), Deputy Prime Minister (2012–2021), Member of the House of Representatives, (1979–1983, 1986–present), Minister for Foreign Affairs (2005–2007), Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications, (2003–2005)^[20]
• Shigeru Ishiba, Member of the House of Representatives (1986–present), Minister for Overcoming Population Decline and Vitalizing Local Economy (2014–2016), Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (2008–2009), Minister of Defense (2007–2008)^[21] (endorsed Kono)^[22]
• Shinjirō Koizumi, Member of the House of Representatives for Kanagawa 11th district (2009–present), Minister of the Environment (2019–2021), son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.^[23] (endorsed Kono)^[23]
• Toshimitsu Motegi, Minister for Foreign Affairs (2019–2021), Member of the House of Representatives (1993–present), former Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (2012–2014) and Secretary General of the LDP (since 2021)^[24]
• Toshihiro Nikai, Member of the House of Representatives (1983–present), Secretary General of the LDP (2016-2021), Minister of Transport (1999–2000), Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry (2005–2006, 2008–2009)^[18]
• Hakubun Shimomura, Member of the House of Representatives (1996–present), Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (2012–2015)^[25]

Endorsements

Endorsements of Fumio Kishida

Members of the National Diet

• Akira Amari (Former Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy, 2012–2016; member of the House of Representatives for Kanagawa 13th district)^[26]
• Toshimitsu Motegi (Minister of Foreign Affairs; member of the House of Representatives for Tochigi 5th district)
• Takuya Hirai (Minister of Digital Agency; member of the House of Representatives for Kagawa 1st district)^[27]
• Hiroshi Kajiyama (Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry; member of the House of Representatives for Ibaraki 4th district)^[28]
• Yōko Kamikawa (Minister of Justice; member of the House of Representatives for Shizuoka 1st district)^[29]
• Gen Nakatani (Former Minister of Defense, 2014–2016; member of the House of Representatives for Kōchi 1st district)^[30]
• Nobuteru Ishihara (Former Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy; member of the House of Representatives for Tokyo 8th district)
• Yasuhisa Shiozaki (Former Chief Cabinet Secretary; member of the House of Representatives for Ehime 1st district)
• Itsunori Onodera (Former Minister of Defense; member of the House of Representatives for Miyagi 6th district)
• Kozo Yamamoto (Former Minister for Regional Revitalization; member of the House of Representatives for Fukuoka 10th district)
• Seishiro Eto (Former Director-General of the Japan Defense Agency ; member of the House of Representatives for Ōita ２nd district)

Prefectural politicians

• Hidehiko Yuzaki (Governor of Hiroshima Prefecture)^[31]

Municipal politicians

Party factions

• Wataru Takeshita (Former Chairman of the Heisei Kenkyūkai; former member of the House of Representatives for Shimane 2nd district; former Minister for Reconstruction, 2014–2015)^[a][32]
• Hiroyuki Hosoda (Chairman of the Seiwa Seisaku Kenkyūkai; member of the House of Representatives for Shimane 1st district); former Chief Cabinet Secretary, 2004–2005)^[32]

Other prominent individuals

• Sadakazu Tanigaki (Former party president, 2009–2012; former Leader of the Opposition, 2009–2012; former Minister of Justice, 2012–2014; former member of the House of Representatives for Kyōto 5th district, 1983–2016)^[33]
• Yoshimasa Hayashi (Former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; Former member of the House of Councillors for Yamaguchi district)

Endorsements of Tarō Kōno

Members of the National Diet

• Shigeru Ishiba (Former Minister of Defense, 2007–2008; member of the House of Representatives for Tottori 1st district)^[22]
• Yoshihide Suga (Prime Minister and outgoing party president; former Chief Cabinet Secretary, 2012–2020; member of the House of Representatives for Kanagawa 2nd district)^[16]
• Shinjirō Koizumi (Minister of the Environment; member of the House of Representatives for Kanagawa 11th district; Son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi)^[23]
• Norihisa Tamura (Minister of Health, Labour, and Welfare; member of the House of Representatives for Mie 4th district)^[34]
• Tetsushi Sakamoto (Minister of Loneliness; member of the House of Representatives for Kumamoto 3rd district)
• Yasufumi Tanahashi (Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission; member of the House of Representatives for Gifu 2nd district)
• Shinji Inoue (Minister in charge of International Exposition; member of the House of Representatives for Tokyo 25th district)
• Hiroshi Moriyama (Former Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries; member of the House of Representatives for Tokyo Kagoshima 4th district)
• Takeshi Iwaya (Former Minister of Defense; member of the House of Representatives for Ōita's 3rd district)

Prefectural politicians

• Ichita Yamamoto (Governor of Gunma Prefecture; former member of the House of Councillors for Gunma at-large district, 1995–2019)^[35]

Municipal politicians

Party factions

Other prominent individuals

• Yōhei Kōno (Former party president, 1993–1995; former Speaker of the House of Representatives, 2003–2009; former member of the House of Representatives for Kanagawa 5th district, 1967–1996, and Kanagawa 17th district, 1996–2009; father of Tarō Kōno) ^[36]

Endorsements of Sanae Takaichi

Members of the National Diet

• Shinzō Abe (Former party president, 2006–2007, 2012–2020; former Prime Minister, 2006–2007, 2012–2020; former member of the House of Representatives for Yamaguchi 4th district)^[37]
• Nobuo Kishi (Minister of Defense; member of the House of Representatives for Yamaguchi 2nd district; former member of the House of Councillors for Yamaguchi at-large district, 2004–2012)^[38]
• Yasutoshi Nishimura (Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy; member of the House of Representatives for Hyogo 9th district）^[39]
• Kōichi Hagiuda (Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; member of the House of Representatives for Tokyo 24th district）
• Takeo Kawamura (Former Chief Cabinet Secretary; member of the House of Representatives for Yamaguchi 3rd district）
• Tomomi Inada (Former Minister of Defense; member of the House of Representatives for Fukui 1st district）
• Hiroshi Hase (Former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; professional wrestler; member of the House of Representatives for Ishikawa 1st district）
• Yoshitaka Sakurada (Former Minister of State for the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games; member of the House of Representatives for Chiba 8th district）

Prefectural politicians

Municipal politicians

Party factions

Other prominent individuals

Endorsements of Seiko Noda

Members of the National Diet

• Yasukazu Hamada (Former Minister of Defense; member of the House of Representatives for Chiba 12th district)^[40]
• Kisaburo Tokai (Former Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology; member of the House of Representatives for Hyōgo 10th district)^[40]
• Jirō Kawasaki (Former Minister of Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare; member of the House of Representatives for Tōkai at-large district)
• Junko Mihara (Member of the House of Councillors for Kanagawa at-large district)

Prefectural politicians

Municipal politicians

Party factions

Other prominent individuals

Recommenders

List of Supporters ^[41]

Candidates	Taro Kono	Fumio Kishida	Sanae Takaichi	Seiko Noda
Leader of recommenders	Tatsuya Ito	Shunichi Suzuki	Yasutoshi Nishimura	Junko Mihara
Person in charge	Tetsushi Sakamoto	Takumi Nemoto	Keiji Furuya	Takeyuki Watanabe
Recommenders	Toshiko Abe Yoichi Anami Tadahiko Ito Hirotaka Ishihara Kenichiro Ueno Shohei Okashita Ryosei Tanaka Masaaki Taira Hinako Takahashi Nobuhide Takemura Atsushi Nonaka Yoshihisa Furukawa Masahisa Miyazaki Hiroyuki Yoshiie Dai Shimamura Shuko Sonoda Kenji Nakanishi Yuhei Yamashita	Masatoshi Ishida Keitaro Ohno Ayuko Kato Hiroshi Kajiyama Hayato Suzuki Tsuyoshi Takagi Shinako Tsuchiya Kozaburo Nishime Noriko Horiuchi Taro Honda Daishiro Yamagiwa Masayoshi Yoshino Hiromichi Watanabe Kuniko Inoguchi Eriko Imai Satoshi Ninoyu Shuji Miyamoto Masako Mori	Hiroshi Hase Tsuyoshi Yamaguchi Taku Eto Miroru Kiuchi Shuichi Takatori Minoru Kihara Hitoshi Kikawada Akimasa Ishikawa Takayuki Kobayashi Hajime Sasaki Shigeki Kobayashi Seiichi Eto Eriko Yamatani Satsuki Katayama Shigeharu Aoyama Hiroshi Yamada Kei Sato Kimi Onoda	Toshitaka Ōoka Noboru Kamiya Jiro Kawasaki Yayoi Kimura Minoru Debata Kisaburo Tokai Yasukazu Hamada Kimichika Hyakutake Teru Fukui Takuma Miyaji Tsuyohito Iwamoto Masato Shimizu Yoshifumi Tsuge Yosuke Tsuruho Masayuki Tokushige Toru Miki Taichiro Motoe Toshio Yamada

Opinion polling

Fieldwork date	Pollster/Link	Sample size	Fumio Kishida	Sanae Takaichi	Tarō Kōno	Shigeru Ishiba	Seiko Noda	Shinjirō Koizumi	Yoshihide Suga	Undecided/None	Notes
25–26 September 2021	Kyodo News^[42]	1,014	22.4%	16.2%	47.4%	–	3.4%	–	–	10.7%	LDP party members
25 September 2021	Mainichi Shimbun^[43]	3,748	18%	28%	47%	–	4%	–	–	3%	–
18 September 2021	Mainichi Shimbun^[44]	1,043	13%	15%	43%	–	6%	–	–	23%	–
17–18 September 2021	Kyodo News^[45]	1,028	18.5%	15.7%	48.6%	–	3.3%	–	–	13.9%	LDP party members
16 September 2021	Seiko Noda officially announces her candidacy
14 September 2021		Shigeru Ishiba announces that he will not run for the LDP leadership; Shinjirō Koizumi announces that he will not run for the LDP leadership and will back Taro Kono
11–12 September 2021	Asahi Shimbun^[46]	1,477	14%	8%	33%	16%	3%	–	–	26%	–
9–11 September 2021	Nikkei Asia^[47]	N/A	14%	7%	27%	17%	–	–	–	35%	–
10 September 2021	Taro Kono officially announces his candidacy
8 September 2021	Sanae Takaichi officially announces her candidacy
4–5 September 2021	Kyodo News^[48]	1,071	18.8%	4%	31.9%	26.6%	4.4%	–	–	14.3%	–
4–5 September 2021	Yomiuri Shimbun^[49]	1,142	12%	–	23%	21%	–	11%	–	33%	–
3 September 2021	Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga withdraws from the election; Taro Kono conveys privately to LDP members that he will run; and Seiko Noda expresses her willingness to run
27–29 August 2021	Nikkei Asia	1,025	13%	3%	16%	15.5%	–	–	11%	41.5%	"Preferred Leader of the LDP"
			14%	–	18%	12%	–	–	20%	36%	"Preferred Prime Minister"
26 August 2021	Fumio Kishida announces his candidacy; and Sanae Takaichi expresses her willingness to run in the LDP presidential election.

Results

Results^[50][51]

Candidate		1st Round								2nd Round
		Diet members		Party members				Total points		Diet members		Prefectural chapters		Total points
		Votes cast	%	Popular votes	%	Allocated votes	%	Total votes	%	Votes cast	%	Votes cast	%	Total votes	%
	Fumio Kishida	146	38.42	219,338	28.86	110	28.80	256	33.60	249	65.53	8	17.02	257	60.19
	Taro Kono	86	22.63	335,046	44.08	169	44.24	255	33.46	131	34.47	39	82.98	170	39.81
	Sanae Takaichi	114	30.00	147,764	19.44	74	19.37	188	24.67	Eliminated
	Seiko Noda	34	8.95	57,927	7.62	29	7.59	63	8.27	Eliminated
Total		380	100	760,075	100	382	100	762	100	380	100	47	100	427	100

Aftermath

After Prime Minister Suga announced his resignation, Kono was heavily favored to win the election as he was in first place among many LDP polls leading up to the election.^[52] His campaign was endorsed by Suga and other high ranking LDP members,^[53] but Kishida narrowly won the first round of the election and ultimately defeated Kono in the run-off.^[50][51]

After being elected, Kishida's victory was labelled as a win for the party's "technocrats establishment".^[54] Kishida was seen by many LDP members as a stable choice to succeed Suga rather than a rapid change.^[54][55] Kono was seen as a candidate of change.^[55] Kishida vowed not to increase the consumption tax rates in Japan and reviewing the pension and health-care system in the country.^[54] He has said that his main focus would be to focus on income redistribution to address income inequality.^[54]

U.S. President Joe Biden congratulated Kishida and looked "forward to working with [Kishida] to strengthen our cooperation in the years ahead".^[56]

President of Taiwan Tsai Ing-wen congratulated Kishida after he was elected Prime Minister of Japan.^[57]

Notes

1. Deceased since 17 September 2021.

References

1. "PM Suga, Kishida to vie for LDP leadership in Sept. 29 election". Kyodo News+. 26 August 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
2. "'Suga decides not to run in LDP leadership race". NHK World-Japan. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
3. "Fumio Kishida elected by Diet as Japan's new prime minister". The Asahi Shimbun. 4 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
4. "Abe could become Japan's longest serving premier". Al Jazeera. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
5. "Japanese PM Shinzo Abe resigns for health reasons". BBC News. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
6. "Japan PM Abe announces his resignation at press conference". Kyodo News. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
7. "'No surprise': Suga indicates intention to run for another term as LDP leader". The Japan Times. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
8. Sugiyama, Satoshi (16 September 2021). "No clear front-runner and factions divided on eve of LDP leadership campaign". The Japan Times. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
9. "Rules for election of President". The Japan Times. Liberal Democratic Party of Japan. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
10. Harris, Tobias (24 September 2021). "Japanese Prime Minister Suga Has No Clear Successor". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
11. Ryotaro Nakamaru (29 August 2020). "Race to succeed Abe kicks off with no clear favorite". The Japan Times. thejapantimes. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
12. Sugiyama, Satoshi (26 August 2021). "Fumio Kishida enters LDP leadership race as party sets voting plan". The Japan Times. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
13. Johnston, Eric (8 September 2021). "Abe ally Sanae Takaichi enters LDP race as underdog". The Japan Times. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
14. 【速報中】河野太郎氏が自民党総裁選に立候補表明、動き活発化. The Asahi Shimbun (in Japanese). 10 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
15. Takahara, Kanako (16 September 2021). "Seiko Noda makes last-minute bid for LDP presidency". The Japan Times. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
16. "Suga to back vaccine minister Taro Kono in LDP leadership race, report says". The Japan Times. 4 September 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
17. "Yoshihide Suga to step down as Japan's prime minister". BBC News. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
18. Johnston, Eric (27 August 2021). "Off to the races: LDP presidential election campaign begins". The Japan Times. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
19. "Ex-PM Abe supports conservative ally Takaichi as Suga's successor". Kyodo News+. 4 September 2021. from the original on 4 September 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
20. "Key Contender to Lead Japan Warns Taiwan Is 'Next Big Problem'". Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
21. "Former Japanese defense chief Shigeru Ishiba rules out entering LDP leadership race". Japan Times. 14 September 2021. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
22. Lies, Elaine (14 September 2021). "Japan LDP's Ishiba set to back Kono in leadership race – report". Reuters. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
23. "Koizumi endorses Kono as Japan's next ruling party chief". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
24. "下村、茂木両氏が自民党総裁選不出馬を表明". Hokkuku Shimbun (in Japanese). 9 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
25. "Japan ruling party policy chief rules out run in leadership election, reports say". The Japan Times. 30 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
26. "Liberal Democratic Party, Mr. Amari "I want to support Mr. Kishida" Presidential election". Nikkei. 6 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
27. "平井氏が岸田氏支持表明 現職閣僚で初". Nikkei. September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
28. "岸田文雄氏の推薦人名簿 自民党総裁選". Nikkei. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
29. "自民党総裁選、岸田氏支持を表明 上川法相". Nikkei. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
30. "中谷氏、岸田氏支持を表明 谷垣Ｇ全体での支援模索". Sankei. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
31. "広島・湯崎知事「岸田氏に期待」 菅首相の退陣表明で索". Nikkei. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
32. . Sanin ChūōTV. Archived from the original on 19 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
33. "谷垣グループ、岸田氏支持 自民党総裁選で中谷氏表明相". Nikkei. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
34. "衆院選の顔選ぶ自民総裁選 中部の国会議員の投票先は？". Chunichi. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
35. "群馬・山本知事が河野氏支持表明 県議ら歓迎初". Nikkei. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2021.
36. "父親として居ても立ってもいられず…悲願成就へ河野洋平氏、かつての「参院のドン」訪問". Yomiuri. 16 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
37. "安倍前首相、高市氏を支援の意向 自民総裁選". The Nikkei. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
38. "岸防衛相は高市氏支持初". Sankei. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
39. "高市氏支持、西村・岸氏が表明". Jiji. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
40. "自民党総裁選、野田聖子氏推薦人名簿". Sankei. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
41. "自由民主党総裁選挙2021 9月17日告示 29日投開票". 選挙ドットコム. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
42. "Taro Kono still top pick among LDP supporters to be next Japan PM: poll". Kyodo News. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
43. "自民党総裁選「関心がある」78％ 「ない」18％ 毎日新聞調査" (in Japanese). Mainichi Shimbun. 25 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
44. "総裁誰に 河野氏43％、高市氏15％、岸田氏13％ 世論調査" (in Japanese). Mainichi Shimbun. 19 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
45. "48% of LDP members see Kono as most fit to be Japan PM: Kyodo poll". Kyodo News. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
46. "自民総裁選、河野氏33％、石破氏16％ 朝日世論調査" (in Japanese). The Asahi Shimbun. 12 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
47. "Japan's vaccines minister leads poll on LDP leadership race". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 12 September 2021.
48. "Taro Kono tops opinion poll as most fit to become Japan's next PM". Kyodo News+. 5 September 2021. from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
49. "Poll: Taro Kono Most Favored Candidate for Next Japanese PM". KBS World. 6 September 2021. from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
50. "第27代自民党総裁に岸田文雄衆議院議員が決定" (in Japanese). The Liberal Democratic Party of Japan. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
51. (PDF) (in Japanese). The Liberal Democratic Party of Japan. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
52. "Taro Kono, vaccine czar and social media star, is the front-runner to become Japan's Prime Minister". Fortune. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
53. Sim, Walter (4 September 2021). "Suga backs Kono, Abe picks Takaichi: Battle lines drawn in fight for Japan's top job". Straits Times. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
54. "Here's What You Need To Know About Japan's Incoming Prime Minister". CNBC. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
55. "Stability over change: Fumio Kishida to become Japan's new PM". Christian Science Monitor. CSMonitor. 29 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
56. "Biden eager to work with new Japan PM to strengthen bilateral ties". Kyodo News. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
57. "Tsai congratulates new Japan PM Kishida - Taipei Times". 5 October 2021.

External links

• YouTube, LDP channel: 自民党総裁選2021 (Jimintō sōsaisen 2021, "LDP presidential election 2021") playlist with election-related formalities (election commission announcements, official candidate registration/nomination procedure, (scheduled) delegate/MP voting & count) and the LDP-sponsored online debates and interviews
• NHK, Nichiyō Tōron (NHK's political Sunday talk show): Episode 2021/9/19 with the four candidates for LDP president as guests (full video is only accessible via NHK+ domestically)