<figure id="attachment_433466" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-433466" style="width: 4000px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="62bb444c"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/07/0861ba2fa7ed4b76ec63cd4306cd9257.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-433466" class="wp-caption-text">Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (left), whose resignation is being discussed even within his own party, and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, who is rapidly emerging as the &#8220;post-Ishiba&#8221; candidate.</figcaption></figure>
<h2> Prime Minister Ishiba, however, is getting agitated by the news media&#8217;s preoccupation with the idea of stepping down from his post.</h2>
 With the tariff negotiations between Japan and the U.S. having been settled in a blitzkrieg, Nagata-cho has become a hot topic of conversation regarding the &#8220;post-Ishiba&#8221; movement.
 In the Upper House election held on July 20, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lost 39 seats in the House of Councillors, a significant decrease from the 52 seats it had held in the previous election. Komeito, which formed a coalition with the Liberal Democratic Party, lost eight seats (14 of which were up for election), leaving the LDP with less than a majority of seats in the upper house.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 This was the third consecutive defeat since Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (68) took office, following the October 2012 lower house election and the June 2013 Tokyo metropolitan assembly election. Prime Minister Ishiba said at a press conference on July 21
 We have received seats that make us the No. 1 party in comparison. The most important thing is not to cause stagnation in national politics, and we must fulfill our responsibility to the nation and the people.
 He emphasized that he would &#8220;stay in office,&#8221; but only a few in the party support his decision. However, only a few in the party support his decision. There is a growing movement to call for his resignation, using the conclusion of Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations as a springboard for his resignation.
 On July 23, Prime Minister Ishiba met with &#8220;three previous prime ministers,&#8221; including Supreme Advisor Taro Aso (84), Vice President Suga Yoshihide (76), and former Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (67). He told reporters about the content of the meeting.
 I shared a strong sense of crisis with the three former prime ministers, and we talked about various issues, such as the fact that the party should never be split up,&#8221; he said.
 On the other hand, he said,
 On the other hand, he added, &#8220;There was no mention of my departure or departure from the party at the meeting. I have never made such a statement. There is absolutely no such fact as has been reported.
 He also refuted the &#8220;resignation&#8221; argument, saying, &#8220;I have never made such a statement.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 However, according to an LDP official
 There is no reason why there has not been any talk of his resignation. Prime Minister Ishiba is not clinging to the prime minister&#8217;s chair now that the Japan-U.S. tariff negotiations have been settled. It is just a matter of timing. The Yomiuri and Mainichi were the first to report that the prime minister was stepping down. The Yomiuri even distributed an extra issue. Prime Minister Ishiba is not happy with the press&#8217;s preemptive resignation theory.
 The Yomiuri even distributed an extra issue of the paper.
 Ishiba is a very angry man, but there seems to be a reason for it. According to a source in Nagata-cho close to the prime minister,
 He wants to attend the August 15 commemoration of the end of the war as the current prime minister, no matter what it takes. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Pacific War in 1945. For Prime Minister Ishiba, who has always been a &#8220;defense geek,&#8221; this is a special day. I think the prime minister wants to send a message about the 80th anniversary of the end of the war in his own name.
 He is a &#8220;defense geek&#8221; by nature.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" The &quot;prime minister&quot; in the position of the minority ruling party is ......"></div>
Despite Prime Minister Ishiba&#8217;s thoughts, the &#8220;post-Ishiba&#8221; race has begun in Nagata-cho.
 Early on, the leading candidates are Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi (44), Sanae Takaichi (64), and Takayuki Kobayashi (50), all of whom ran in the presidential election last September. Shinjiro was ahead of Koizumi in the previous presidential election, but failed to make it to the final ballot.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 This time, he made his presence felt by taking a stand on the so-called &#8220;rice issue. According to a Diet member close to Shinjiro, he is &#8216;gearing up (for the presidential election).
<h2> A Prime Minister Who Can &#8220;Get Cooperation&#8221; from Opposition Parties</h2>
 What about Mr. Takaichi and &#8220;Kobahawk&#8221;?
 In the Upper House election, Mizuta Sugita, a member of Takaichi&#8217;s support group, lost the election. Councilor Masashi Nishida also won on thin ice. We cannot expect him to have the same impact as in the last presidential election. Kobahawk is certainly a promising candidate, but many people say it is too early to tell.
 Aside from the three candidates, there are some reports that former Prime Minister Kishida will be reappointed to the post. It is said that Kishida, with an eye on the political situation after the Upper House election, has been trying to make contact behind the scenes with some of the heavyweight Diet members with whom he had been keeping his distance. According to an LDP official, &#8220;He is already warming up.
 &#8220;He has already finished warming up.
 However, the person&#8217;s motivation is not what is behind the move. However, despite his motivation, his popularity among the public is low, and he is not sure if he can make a strong showing in the next lower house election.
 In such a situation, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (64) has emerged as a dark horse.
 Yoshimasa Hayashi, 64, is a graduate of Harvard University&#8217;s Kennedy School of Government and a graduate of the University of Tokyo&#8217;s Faculty of Law. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs under Prime Minister Kishida and has also held the key post of Chief Cabinet Secretary in the Ishiba administration.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 Although he is undeniably more subdued than Shinjiro and Takaichi, he may have an advantage in terms of &#8220;cohesiveness.
 Political commentator Harumi Arima said of Hayashi,
 With the autocrats losing their majority in both the lower and upper house, they will have to work with the opposition parties on a policy-by-policy basis in order to pass legislation. In that case, Mr. Hayashi&#8217;s name has been surfacing as someone who can get the opposition parties to cooperate with him. He is not flashy, but he is solid, and above all, he is a policy expert. He is competent and has done a good job of laying the groundwork for policies and other discreet activities since he was young. He is mild-mannered and has few enemies, so I think he will be very stable.
 He has a mild-mannered personality and has few enemies, so I think he will be very stable.
 The future is always dark in Nagata-cho. The &#8220;dark struggle&#8221; between the various camps is likely to intensify from here on.

 Yoshio Tsunoda/Afro

 Prime Minister Ishiba's disastrous defeat in the Upper House election has led to growing talk of his resignation, even within his own party. Despite this, he has stated that he will not resign, but behind his back, a fierce race is being waged for the post of "Ishiba.

When will you quit?&#8221; Prime Minister Ishiba insists on 8.15 Yoshimasa Hayashi, who has emerged rapidly ahead of Sanae Takaichi and Shinjiro Koizumi

When will you quit?” Prime Minister Ishiba insists on 8.15 Yoshimasa Hayashi, who has emerged rapidly ahead of Sanae Takaichi and Shinjiro Koizumi

Access Ranking