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Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is set to dissolve parliament next week and call an election for October 31, according to the NHK broadcaster.
The report came shortly after legislators formally chose Kishida as prime minister on Monday.
Kishida’s plan, amid widespread expectations for a poll in November, appears to be aimed at exploiting a traditional honeymoon period accorded to new governments and a sharp drop in the number of coronavirus infections.
Outgoing Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga enjoyed support ratings of about 70 percent soon after taking office about a year ago, but was pummelled by criticism of his handling of the pandemic, leading him to make way for a new face to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) through the election.
Kishida, 64, a former foreign minister with an image as a low-key consensus builder, beat out three contenders last week to lead the party, ensuring he clinched the post of prime minister as the LDP has a majority in parliament.
NHK said Kishida will announce the election in his first news conference as prime minister later on Monday. The public broadcaster added that Kishida will dissolve parliament on October 14.
The ruling party’s new Secretary-General, Akira Amari, told reporters that while he had not heard anything for certain, he believed Kishida would move in that direction.
“Kishida’s not wasting any time at all,” Tobias Harris, a senior fellow of the Center for American Progress, said on Twitter.
“October 31 puts the opposition on its heels, takes advantage of a honeymoon in the polls, plus a better chance of lower case numbers.”
Harris added, “If he wins comfortably in the general election and can hold things together well enough to win the upper house elections next year, he’ll have up to three years without an election.”
Abe’s shadow
Kishida’s poll decision was probably influenced by not wanting to repeat a mistake made by Suga, who did not call an election when his backing was still strong, analysts said.
“I believe he aims to hold the election before the general atmosphere (towards the new cabinet) turns cold,” said Zentaro Kamei, a senior fellow at the PHP Institute.
Later on Monday, Kishida is set to unveil a cabinet featuring allies of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, so ensuring the influence of the latter’s conservative base.
He will replace all but two of 20 Cabinet posts under Suga and 13 are being appointed to ministerial posts for the first time, according to the Japanese media.
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi, who is Abe’s younger brother, are to be retained.
Finance Minister Taro Aso will move to a top party post and be replaced by his 68-year-old relative, Shunichi Suzuki. Other jobs destined for Abe allies are the trade and industry portfolio, to be held by current Education Minister Koichi Hagiuda, who is close to Abe.
Kishida “won the election with the support of Abe and Aso, so now it’s time for him to return the favour, it’s not the time for him to cut them off,” said political analyst Atsuo Ito, adding that Kishida tended to rate safety over bold action.
The prime minister will also create a new cabinet post aimed at tackling economic dimensions of Japan’s national security, appointing 46-year-old Takayuki Kobayashi, who is relatively new to parliament.
Only three women are reportedly included, up from two in Suga’s government.
Veteran female legislators Seiko Noda, one of four candidates who vied for the party leadership race, is expected to be the minister in charge of the declining birthrate and local revitalisation.
Another woman, Noriko Horiuchi, will become vaccinations minister, replacing Taro Kono, the runner-up in the party leadership race.
An urgent task for the new leader will be turning around his party’s sagging popularity, hurt by Suga’s perceived high-handedness on the pandemic and other issues.
He will also have to ensure Japan’s healthcare systems, vaccination campaign and other virus measures are ready for a possible resurgence of COVID-19 in winter, while gradually normalising social and economic activity.
Kishida is expected to make a policy speech later this week before he dissolves the lower house of parliament.