Takaichi Faces Backlash from Supporters Over Negative Campaigns Amid Party Concerns About Election Viability

Takaichi herself stated on the TBS program broadcast on the 17th,

“I entrusted the selection of supporters to the campaign team. I didn’t know until I read the newspaper the next day.”

But this comes across as somewhat irresponsible.

Lawyer Masaki Kito stated on X (formerly Twitter),

“A candidate with supporters involved in under-the-table money issues will naturally postpone the problem of illegal funds or may be lenient toward it. I believe they should not become the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, that is, the Prime Minister.”

He pointed out.

The third issue is the problem related to the former Unification Church.

Up to this point, these issues had not been major points of contention, but the Asahi Shimbun scooped on the 17th with a photo showing the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe meeting with executives of the former Unification Church at the party headquarters in 2013. The reporting journalist revealed on the Asahi Shimbun Digital YouTube channel that it took six months to verify the information.

The late former Prime Minister Abe had a close relationship with Takaichi, supporting her in the previous LDP presidential election. On social media, enthusiastic supporters are calling for support for Takaichi, and in 2001, an interview article featuring her was published in a monthly magazine affiliated with the Unification Church.

“Takaichi is eager, believing that being ‘the first female Prime Minister of Japan’ is within reach, but lawmakers are thinking about the impending general election, which could happen as early as this year. The real question is whether Takaichi can fight as Prime Minister. She may face intense scrutiny from the opposition regarding the issues of illegal funds and the former Unification Church, which could leave her on the defensive. This would be counterproductive and hardly a refreshing image. Voices within the party are starting to say that we can’t fight the election with Takaichi,” said a political reporter from a national newspaper.

The Takaichi camp is furious over the ongoing “negative campaign,” stating,

“It’s an overt attempt to eliminate Takaichi!”

The journalist remarked,

“If it comes down to a runoff between Ishiba and Koizumi, it would likely be Koizumi. The issue arises if Koizumi fails to make it to the runoff and it ends up being Ishiba vs. Takaichi. Koizumi’s votes would flow to Ishiba, while some factions like the Aso and Abe groups might side with Takaichi. Either way, it would be a close contest.”

He said.

There are still about 20% of lawmakers and party members who have not decided on their voting preferences, making it difficult to predict the situation. It seems that a tight contest will continue up until the voting day.