<figure id="attachment_392147" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-392147" style="width: 1631px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="38830368"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/f97e1ad36f22659778a802620cfb67f1.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-392147" class="wp-caption-text">Aso still has not dissolved his faction. The battle for &#8220;kingmaker&#8221; with Kan has intensified. &#8230;&#8230;</figcaption></figure>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Put it in Takaichi!</span></p>
<p> On September 19, word got around among political reporters that former Prime Minister Taro Aso, one of the two &#8220;kingmakers&#8221; in the political world, had issued such an order.</p>
<p> In the chaotic LDP presidential election (to be held on September 27), there is an extremely high possibility that the first round of voting will not be enough to decide the winner. In that case, a decisive vote will be held between the top two candidates, with a total of 415 votes, 368 from Diet members and 47 from prefectural federations, deciding the outcome.</p>
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<p> Shinjiro Koizumi made a strong start, but as the debates wore on, he began to lose steam. Instead, Sanae Takaichi is in hot pursuit.</p>
<h2> If Shinjiro vs. Ishiba, Aso would have &#8220;no act to play.</h2>
<p> Aso is said to be &#8220;leaping at the opportunity.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> Former Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide and Mr. Aso are now known as the kingmakers in Nagata-cho. They do not have a good relationship. The underlying theme of this presidential election is &#8216;Who is the real kingmaker? (A reporter in charge of politics for a national newspaper).</span></p>
<p> At first, it was Kan, who had Shinjiro and Shigeru Ishiba as his &#8220;pawns,&#8221; who was in a good mood. If the final vote was &#8220;Ishiba vs. Shinjiro,&#8221; that would be the end of it. He was in a position to exert his influence no matter which way the vote went.</p>
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<p> However, with Mr. Shinjiro&#8217;s expected growth stagnant and Mr. Takaichi&#8217;s rapid rise in the polls, there is now a possibility that Mr. Aso&#8217;s &#8220;bowl of cards&#8221; will be turned over to Mr. Kan.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Behind the scenes of the fierce &quot;fixer-upper&quot; battle with Kan: ......"></div>
<p><span class="strongInContent">If Ishiba and Shinjiro had remained in the runoff, Aso would have been left out of the running. When Mr. Takaichi intervened, Mr. Aso, through his local Fukuoka office, called on more than 50 members of his faction to vote for him. The Aso faction is the only one that has maintained its faction after the slush fund issue was uncovered. At first, he was reading the situation and said he would vote voluntarily, but now he has finally made his own move.</span></p>
<p> The Aso faction is not monolithic, and it is not clear how many of its members will respond to Oyabun&#8217;s order. Still, there is no doubt that the Aso faction has become a key player in the presidential race.</p>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> The one who is not amused is Kan. First of all, who will be left in the decisive vote, Shinjiro or Ishiba? It is now necessary to read the votes,&#8221; said a political insider.</span></p>
<h2> Concerns about Mr. Takaichi&#8217;s fierce pursuit</h2>
<p> The political power struggle is always a little darker than it seems. If this were a TV drama, it would be quite entertaining.</p>
<p> Many questions remain about Mr. Takaichi, including the issue of sending policy leaflets to party members before the presidential election, the fact that 13 of his 20 endorsers, including Mizue Sugita, are &#8220;backstage money councilors,&#8221; and his &#8220;relationship&#8221; with the former Unification Church. Many questions remain about the &#8220;relationship&#8221; with the former Unification Church.</p>
<p> In particular, regarding the issue of &#8220;slush fund&#8221; endorsers, on a TV program broadcast on January 17, he said, &#8220;I&#8217;m not sure which one [endorser] I can put in.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> He said, &#8220;I left it up to the election committee and the team to decide who they would recommend. I didn&#8217;t know about it until I read the newspaper the next day.</span></p>
<p> He also said that the term &#8220;kurakane senator&#8221; was &#8220;incorrect.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> It is not correct. There are people who have explained everything to the public in their constituencies, and they are satisfied with it.</span></p>
<p> He also quipped, &#8220;I didn&#8217;t know about it when I read the newspaper the next day.</p>
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<p><span class="strongInContent"> He has stated clearly that when he becomes president, he has no intention of conducting an additional investigation into the slush fund case. Each candidate was slurring his words, but Takaichi was the only one who said so clearly. This is said to be a &#8220;hidden message&#8221; to attract the slush fund lawmakers to their side.</span></p>
<p> Mr. Takaichi has inherited the will of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and plans to follow the &#8220;Abenomics&#8221; policy of extraordinary monetary easing in terms of the economy. According to a source in the opposition, &#8220;In the end, the presidential election will be a referendum on the people.</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> In the end, the presidential election is nothing but a power struggle without the people. She has ardent sympathizers because they see a vision of Mr. Abe. The LDP will never change.&#8221;</span></p>
<p> The opposition parties are also not monolithic, and when it comes to the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), the presidential election itself is not being talked about at all. A reporter for a national newspaper said at the beginning of this article</p>
<p><span class="strongInContent"> There have been a number of scandals, including the falsification of Moritomo&#8217;s official documents, which would normally be classified as a regime change. The biggest problem is the opposition&#8217;s inability to make the most of these scandals.</span></p>
<p> He asserts, &#8220;The biggest problem is the opposition&#8217;s inability to make a difference.</p>
<p> The general election will be held as early as this year. Will history repeat itself?</p>


 Takeshi Kinugawa

 Taro Aso is in a fierce "kingmaker competition" with Suga Yoshihide. Aso, who would drop out of the power race if it comes to a "runoff" with Koizumi Shinjiro and Ishiba Shigeru, whom Kan is pushing for, has now seen a "ray of light"... ...

Taro Aso, on the precipice of the &#8220;kingmaker&#8217;s race,&#8221; has finally made his move&#8230;under the radar: &#8220;Put it in Sanae Takaichi&#8217;s hands!

Taro Aso, on the precipice of the “kingmaker’s race,” has finally made his move…under the radar: “Put it in Sanae Takaichi’s hands!

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