UPDATES AS SHIGERU ISHIBA REELCTED AS PRIME MINISTER, CHANGES HEADER, DECK, LEDE
By Riyaz ul Khaliq
ISTANBUL (AA) – Japanese lawmakers voted in a runoff on Monday to reelect Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leader Shigeru Ishiba, 67, as the 103rd prime minister of the country.
He won against Yoshihiko Noda of Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDPJ). It is the first time in over 30 years that a vote to elect prime minister has gone to runoff in Japan.
The vote to elect the prime minister went to run off after the two main candidates failed to secure minimum support of 233 lawmakers in the lower house of the parliament.
Ishiba received 221 votes against 160 of Noda to win the premier election.
Ishiba, however, easily sailed through the election in the upper house of the parliament where LDP has majority with support of its junior partner Komeito.
With Ishiba winning in runoff, it means he will lead a minority government with outside support from smaller opposition parties.
He is expected to announce a new Cabinet later today after his Cabinet members resigned en masse to pave way for the special four-day session of Parliament, locally known as Diet, to vote for the new prime minister.
The fresh vote to elect the chief executive comes after Japan held snap general elections on Oct. 27 which threw up a hung parliament with no party gaining majority in the house of 465 lawmakers.
Ishiba’s LDP and Komeito lost their majority in the parliament while opposition CDPJ made substantial gains yet short of forming a government.
Ishiba was elected 102nd prime minister of Japan in early October after he won the LDP leadership race in September.
Ishiba was eyeing support from Democratic Party for the People which boosted its numbers to 21 in the lower house of the bi-cameral parliament.
LDP and Komeito together are short of 18 seats for a simple majority of 233 and do not meet the mark even with the support of six independents.
Negotiating support from smaller opposition parties means LDP-Komeito coalition will be conceding many positions inside and outside the parliament to lawmakers outside the two parties.
It also remains to be seen who from Ishin party, which has 38 lawmakers, will extend their support to.
The LDP has ruled Japan for almost all years since it was founded in 1955.
It faced the first setback in early 1990s and later in 2009 when it was ousted from the government for three years.