Who will replace Fumio Kishida as Japan’s PM? Take a look at the contenders

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa told reporters Monday she’s making preparations to run in the race, the first to publicly declare their intentions. It remains to be seen if she can garner enough support from members to meet the threshold to qualify. More candidates are likely to make their intentions known in coming days.

Here’s a look at some of the contenders to replace Kishida.

Foreign Minister Kamikawa, 71, is a Harvard graduate who ran her own consulting firm before going into politics. If chosen, she would become Japan’s first female prime minister. She is known for her efforts to promote women candidates, which is an uphill battle given that only about 12 per cent of LDP lawmakers are female. Kamikawa has also come under fire from activists for signing off on as many as sixteen executions, including six members of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult, while serving as the justice minister. Kamikawa is an English speaker.

At 49, Kobayashi is considered part of the younger generation of potential leaders. He is a bit of a long shot to take over in 2024 but by running now he is letting LDP members and voters know he has his eyes set on eventually becoming prime minister.

The former minister for economic security was a backer of deregulation when he was in the cabinet. He also said Japan must seek a balance between allowing companies and research institutions to work together as needed across borders, while mitigating any side-effects in terms of national security.

A former defence minister who has made several unsuccessful runs for the leadership role, Ishiba, 67, regularly tops the list of politicians voters would like to see as the next prime minister. In recent weeks, Ishiba has expressed support for the Bank of Japan’s