Mr. Shizuka Kamei Warns of Female Prime Minister Potential Amid Deputy Prime Minister Aso’s Old Hag Remark

The Liberal Democratic Party was shaken to its core.

The mayoral election in Maebashi City, due to the expiration of the term, was held on February 4th, where independent newcomer and former prefectural assembly member Akira Ogawa defeated the three-term incumbent, independent candidate Ryu Yamamoto, to secure his first election victory.

 

Yamamoto had the backing of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito. Ogawa, a former member of the Democratic Party, received the endorsement of the Gunma branch of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation (JTUC), effectively setting up a confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties.

Gunma Prefecture, with all five House of Representatives single-member constituencies and the Gunma prefectural constituency in the House of Councillors, is a conservative stronghold dominated by the LDP. The primary reason for the significant upset was, indeed, the backroom financial scandal surrounding a political fund party of the LDP faction. This was disclosed by a private secretary to an LDP lawmaker.

“The headwinds were stronger than expected. Considering how overwhelmingly dominant the LDP is in Gunma, this result raises questions about the upcoming House of Representatives election. With Prime Minister Kishida at the helm, it seems the party may struggle in the elections.”

The issue of secret funds emerged, but for a while, there was a mood of watching quietly within the party. This was because,

“There were no other promising candidates available,” said the same private secretary.

However, what has suddenly emerged now is the candidacy of Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa.

Regarding Ms. Kamikawa, Vice Prime Minister Taro Aso made a statement during a speech last month.

“This old lady is really something.” he said.

“I wouldn’t say she’s that beautiful, though.”

“And just like that, it blew up.” As for Ms. Kawaguchi

“In the world, there are diverse opinions and perspectives.”

he remarked, leaving it at that.

 Political insiders regarding the backstage of this matter.

“With the dissolution or downsizing of various factions within the Liberal Democratic Party, the Shikokukai, led by Mr. Aso, is the largest force with 72 members of the Diet (as of December 2023). Mr. Aso is not considering dissolving the faction and wields considerable influence within the party. Mr. Kamikawa probably took these factors into account when making his statement.”

Regarding Mr. Aso’s ‘Old Lady’ remark, there are also many who view it differently.

On the broadcast of Beat Takeshi’s TV Tackle on the 4th (TV Asahi), former Lower House member Kensuke Miyazaki mentioned.

“Next time, it won’t be Kishida, it’ll be Kamikawa. If I make a statement like this and it sparks controversy, it’ll draw attention to Kamikawa, and I’m even considering setting the stage for Kamikawa to enter the ring for the party leadership election.”

He elaborated on his theory.

While the idea of calculated gaffes received some pushback from fellow panelists, former Miyazaki Governor Hideo Higashikokubaru also expressed support for the idea of promoting Kamikawa.

“Praising Kamikawa is clearly a declaration that the next Prime Minister will be Kamikawa. In other words, the Aso faction is signaling that they will support Kamikawa next. That’s the signal.”

Harmonizing with this sentiment.

As of last year, one figure who had mentioned Kamikawa’s name was former Liberal Democratic Party Policy Research Council Chairman Shizuka Kamei.

In a December broadcast of MBS TV’s ‘Yon-chan TV,’ when asked ‘Who will be the next leader?’ he confidently asserted the following.

“Watch, my predictions come true. The Liberal Democratic Party cannot win elections without a female leader. By changing the face of leadership and having a woman represent the party, you’ll see the approval ratings rise.

Watch closely. Because the opposition is ineffective, it will naturally happen. Just watch, it will happen. Either Kamikawa or Takahichi (Sanae) will become the leader.”

Kamikawa is a pragmatic politician proficient in languages. He has served as Minister of Justice three times and in July 2018, he approved the execution of seven former senior members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, including its leader Shoko Asahara, responsible for the Tokyo subway sarin attack.

“With the execution of Asahara, Kamikawa has been assigned lifelong personal security protection. His willingness to fulfill a role that could potentially disrupt his personal life should be acknowledged and appreciated.” (Sports Newspaper Reporter)

(Sports newspaper reporter). A source in Nagata-cho said, “Kamei is right.

“As Kamei suggests, the scenario of ‘only the first female prime minister can recover from this’ is being outlined. As additional information, along with Kamikawa and Takahichi, the name of Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike is also being mentioned. It seems to imply a return to national politics through a change of position.”

He also revealed that the situation in Nagatacho is said to be unpredictable. Indeed, is the birth of the first female prime minister just around the corner