2011年8月19日金曜日

Kaieda set to run; Maehara undecided

Trade minister Banri Kaieda has decided to run for president of the Democratic Party of Japan to replace Prime Minister Naoto Kan and will officially announce his candidacy Friday, party sources said Thursday.

News photo

Kaieda is expected to resign as industry minister to take responsibility for the confusion that erupted over whether to restart the reactors at the Genkai power plant in Saga Prefecture.

He also is waiting to ensure the Diet passes a bill for promoting renewable energy in light of the Fukushima nuclear crisis. The bill's passage is expected by the end of the month.

Meanwhile, former Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara has re-emerged, with relatively high public support ratings, as another potential candidate to succeed Kan but remains undecided about whether to throw his hat into the ring, his allies said.

Maehara has received relatively stronger support for a leadership bid than the other potential candidates, public opinion polls show.

Maehara's allies said he will decide whether to run in the not-too-distant future. The winner would be expected to replace Kan as prime minister.

Maehara's supporters, however, are divided over whether he should be a contender. Some have said he should not seek the top post, which he once held before the DPJ came to power, given that he resigned as foreign minister in March over accepting donations from a foreign national — a Korean resident of Japan with a Japanese name. They are urging him to wait until the party holds its regular presidential election in September next year.

Coming out of his group's meeting, Maehara told reporters he is glad some of his allies want him to run.

"I take it seriously. I'll decide after consulting with my fellow party members," he said.

Other potential DPJ candidates in the looming poll include Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda, farm minister Michihiko Kano and former transport minister Sumio Mabuchi.

Noda spoke Wednesday night with Maehara and asked for his intraparty group's support in the election, a source said.


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