Japan PM Shinzo Abe re-elected as LDP president
Abe defeated his sole rival, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, by securing 553 votes to Ishiba's 254 in the election, which in effect decides Japan's next prime minister because the ruling party and its coalition partner Komeito control majorities in both Diet chambers.
Of 807 total valid votes, Abe won 329 out of ballots cast by Diet members while securing 224 by rank-and-file members. Ishiba attracted 73 from legislators but put up a good fight among ordinary members, garnering 181 votes.
Abe's failure to receive wider support from the rank-and-file members, whose votes are believed to be more reflective of public opinion, suggests there are many who have become frustrated with his long tenure and dissatisfied with a tepid economic recovery, viewed as not benefiting rural areas and smaller companies.
Still, Abe stressed his long-cherished goal of amending the Constitution shortly after securing his third consecutive term.
"It's now time to tackle a revision to the Constitution," he said. "Let's work together to create a new nation for the sake of the people."
Following the victory, the prime minister is planning to reshuffle his Cabinet and the party's leadership lineup after returning home in late September from New York, where he is scheduled to attend the U.N. General Assembly, according to a senior lawmaker of the ruling bloc.
LDP sources said Abe has started making arrangements to revamp his team on Oct. 1.
The Cabinet is then considering convening an extraordinary Diet session later in the month, government sources said.
Much attention is on whether the LDP will submit constitutional revision proposals to the parliamentary session, as Abe urged during the leadership election campaign that lasted less than two weeks.
Abe, who turns 64 on Friday, stepped down as LDP chief and prime minister in 2007 due to health reasons. But he staged a comeback to the top post of the LDP in September 2012 and returned to office later in the year after the party ousted from power the now-defunct Democratic Party of Japan.
He was re-elected party leader unopposed in 2015, when his previous tenure expired. Last year, the LDP decided to extend its term limit for party leaders and enable them to serve for three consecutive three-year terms, up from the previous limit of two consecutive three-year terms.
Abe could surpass Taro Katsura's all-time record of 2,886 days in office during his new term through September 2021, including his stint as prime minister between 2006 and 2007. Katsura served as prime minister in the 1900s and 1910s.