If Abe goes, who would succeed him?

If Abe goes, who would succeed him?

Noone noteworthy!!

Nothing new seems they all are from political families, same old same old. Regurgitated.

Agree with all the above. Of the above Kono seems to be the best choice as he is not Nippon Kaigi- which probably means he won't succeed.

Sorry forgot to add- my bet is on either Ishiba or Kishida. Both are NK members known for their right wing stances.

At any rate- the fact that we are discussing this is good news. Hopefully it means that the political landscape sees Abe as a liability and will throw him under the bus.

I would vote Shinjiro Koizumi because at least his family is without a fault. An honourable politician father, and a diligent actor brother, who did more for the betterment of the nation than LDP corruptionees.

Japan. DO NOT DISPOSE OF THIS MAN AND HIS PARTY

Better the devil you know.

Koizuimi is a good choice, as is Kono and Kushida.

Is this the choice?

Maybe not the LDP then!

ZENJI, no worry, Abe is not going to be disposed. It is too inhuman. He will be jailed according to the laws.

The LDP will decide the next prime minister anyway, just ask them who it’s gonna be.

Who will succeed him? Just another right-wing bureaucratic puppet.

Simple, any Puppet with Nippon Kaigi Pin will do. Pretty face or offspring of former politican is a +bonus ( for voters ), Brain not required - as everything else is decided in the background by the NipponK's Grandpa's anyway.

No Edano?

In these days its probably more important to ask - who is the successor to Suga ?

A good couple of Billion Yen Secret Slush funds and a hawkish Chief Cabinet Secretary is the key. Once the Chief Cabinet Secretary has stable control of News, TV, socialmedia the future Prime Minister has secured his long naptimes in the Diet.

Scandals ? Voters and Damage Control ? Thats what the Secret Budget is for.

No Edano?

No. He is not a member of LDP. The leader of the largest party becomes PM in Japan.

Damn, are they all children of politicians ?

As the LDP will stay in power anyway...

I would hope for Kono, because it seems he would do things for the environment. Which is needed right now in Japan.

It doesn't much matter -- it's either cronyism or nepotism that'll get the next person in, certainly not any ability in politics. As long as they are less likely to push for Constitutional revision and the same crap Abe has done -- or to the same level, I think we're far better off without him.

If Abe goes, who would succeed him?

Some other random corrupt and inept LDP politician.

Move along.

Ishiba seems pretty intelligent. But whenever i see him talk I think he’d make the perfect villain in a Bond movie. Those eyes...

Give us someone sane please and will help the economy instead of just throwing money at it.

Of course everybody's First Choice is Super Mario, but I think Nippon Kaigi will choose and we will suffer more

Reluctance to change the constitution is a plus for Kishida, don't know much else about him.

With Ishida, it's not just the eyes; the way he talks always gives the impression he thinks he's talking to a moron, needing to explain things slowly, in words of one syllable. Whether he intends to or not, he talks down to the electorate.

Noda is scary; she pulled out all the stops to give birth at an age when most women are looking forward to grandchildren, yet still thinks her political career is more important than looking after her severely disabled son whose condition is solely her responsibility.

Contrast that with Kono, who donated part of his own body for the sake of his father. Out of this bunch, he is the one I would go with; at least he seems human. No idea about his policies, but since he's LDP I would have no great hopes.

Koizumi's main claim to fame and popularity is being his father's son, which if you don't have a very high regard for Koizumi Senior is not much of a recommendation.

With any luck the current scandal(s) will bring Abe, Aso and the whole LDP down low enough to give the opposition another shot at running the country.

Replace him with an Algorithm, a ball of string, and some dice

In Russia, you don't replace leader - leader replace you.

give the opposition another shot at running the country.

They need to stop being the opposition and start proposing their alternative policy platform, be a government in waiting.

The electorate only knows that they oppose but do not really know what any of them would change. I think this is why the LDP keeps getting re-elected despite all the cronyism and unhappiness with what Abe does do.

@Cleo.

yep. Know exactly what you mean about the way he talks.

But ....

wow - if I would have said what you said about Noda and were famous - I’d be crucified

When PM Abe and his wife Mrs Akie both , have denied of any wrongdoing in the discounted land sale deal to school operator Moritomo Gakuen , then why there so much pressure on the PM to exit from his post. PM Abe must resist all such pressure and remain in his seat unless irrefutable evidence is produced of their involvement in the land scandal .

wow - if I would have said what you said about Noda and were famous - I’d be crucified

Then maybe I should be thankful I'm not famous....

I think it's an opinion shared by many (judging from conversations with friends, but then, they're my friends so sharing similar opinions and values is no surprise...) I think, but no one is allowed to state it publicly for some reason - it attacks the boy (no it doesn't), it infringes on her private life (so private she wrote a book about it), it negates all women's reproductive rights (no it doesn't), it's a criticism of feminism/equal rights for women/women in the workplace/women in politics (poppycock).

I sympathise with Noda and any woman who wants to have a child and, for whatever reason, cannot. She tried to resolve the problem in her own way, a way that other women have used to varying degrees of success. So far, so good. Once things went wrong, she should (in my opinion) have shown a greater sense of responsibility than to just carry on as normal. If she were to create a political problem as a result of her own actions, would she walk away from/deny her responsibility for that, too? Not PM material.

Will agree with Cleo on her comments - I know some of you are shocked.

I do have to ask though Cleo "Once things went wrong, she should (in my opinion) have shown a greater sense of responsibility than to just carry on as normal." - what do you think she should have done differently? And would a man be expected to do the same in the same situation?

Can I also state that the idea of Koizumi 2.0 makes me want to be sick? He has done NOTHING but ride coattails.

@zichi. You are right. The only way to vote is to hack, but that is a nono

I'd say Kono, only thing is he does wear that nippon gakai little blue pin a lot.

Will agree with Cleo on her comments

That's not something marie writes often! Cheers.

what do you think she should have done differently?

I think when she was told 'I would lose an election if I took too much time off so, I went back to work in less than two months after giving birth' - she should not have made the choice she did. Her claim that 'My problem is the same as that of any other working women who could lose their jobs, could not climb the corporate ladder or could be forced to take pay cuts' completely cuts her child's condition out of the equation. As any woman with a severely disabled child will recognise, the problem is not the same as an ordinary mum wanting affordable childcare/flexible work hours/time off for school sports day, etc.

She's also on record as saying that it is best for a mother to look after her ailing child round the clock while it is best for a lawmaker to give her undivided attention to her work. But neither option is possible for her. In other words, she admits that she is allowing both 'jobs' to suffer.

And would a man be expected to do the same in the same situation?

That's a good question. When a couple have a disabled child then of course they have to pull together. In Noda's case, she's admitted she was obsessed with the idea of 'giving birth'; I'm not sure exactly how involved her partner, who remains a shadowy figure, was in the whole process. There are rumours (though nothing from reliable sources) that say he is a stay-at-home dad, in which case good for him. Still, in this case, I think it's safe to say the care of the child she was so desperate to conceive is her responsibility.

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2012/03/23/national/lawmaker-has-no-regrets-about-giving-birth-at-50/#.WrNI1LZ7E19

As long as their platform is to end smoking in restaurants, not raise the consumption tax, and stop spending on pork, I would be ok with them. And please please please a much weaker yen.

Such a minor issue to be changing governments for in this critical time of North Korea, China and structural economic changes. The documents have to prove without a doubt that Abe or Akie benefited from the situation. None of those in waiting could have handled Trump nor Xi jinping better than abe has done. Priorities, people.

But if her husband is a stay at home dad, I'm not sure I see the problem. It's just the reverse of what so many dads here do, no? I don't know enough to know about the situation to say she's not doing both well. Will go and read the link you gave. Thank you for that.

@Aly Rustom

What makes you think Kono isnt N G please?

What makes you think Kono isnt N G please?

Below is a list of members including if I'm not mistaken, all the politicians involved with the group. I checked and couldn't find his name there.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_members_of_Nippon_Kaigi#T

However it is possible that I missed something. I've checked sites both in English and Japanese. I can't find anything that says he's affiliated with them.

However, any information would be welcome..

B.l. SharmaToday 01:37 pm JST

When PM Abe and his wife Mrs Akie both , have denied of any wrongdoing in the discounted land sale deal to school operator Moritomo Gakuen , then why there so much pressure on the PM to exit from his post.

Because no one believes his denials, maybe?

PM Abe must resist all such pressure and remain in his seat unless irrefutable evidence is produced of their involvement in the land scandal .

All there is to counter the facts that have been established about this land scandal is the PM's word. Anyone who takes his word at face value is probably the kind of person who gets taken in by Ore Ore scams.

Kobe White Bar OwnerToday 03:29 pm JST

I'd say Kono, only thing is he does wear that nippon gakai little blue pin a lot.

I don't think they're Nippon Kaigi pins. I believe they signify support for rescuing the abductees from North Korea, so it's probably not just Nippon Kaigi people who wear them.

K o n o. If. LDP choose him. Noda because a half of Japanese are women.

Here is a list of hopefuls according to recent Kyodo Polls (March 17-18) among general voters.

Ishiba: 25.4%

Koizumi: 23.7%

Abe: 21.7%

Kishida: 6.4%

Kono: 2.9%

Is there a write in vote as well? I'd like to see that put in. Maybe get Mutoh Keiji in office?