Speaking of predictions, the destruction of the Machimura faction is proceeding apace.Before the LDP's September election, I asked whether anyone thinks that "the Machimura faction, that 89-member monster of a faction that sits at the intersection of the LDP's divisions between 'neo-liberal' reformers, party leaders, and ideological conservatives, will survive this party election."Events appear to …
Tag: factional politics
On the LDP and its factions
My latest contribution to the Far Eastern Economic Review's website — on the decline of the LDP's factions — can be found here.Subscribers to the Far Eastern Economic Review can also find my take on the Aso cabinet in the October 2008 print edition.
The field gets crowded
On Friday I noted that the LDP was shaping up with four candidates.Not long after I wrote that post, however, it became clear that the field would expand before long, in large part because younger LDP members like Yamauchi Koichi are unhappy with their choices.As a result, Ishiba Shigeru (51), the former defense minister, Yamamoto …
Fault lines
Does anyone think that the Machimura faction, that 89-member monster of a faction that sits at the intersection of the LDP's divisions between "neo-liberal" reformers, party leaders, and ideological conservatives, will survive this party election?Following up on both his previous dismissal of Koike Yuriko's prospects and his endorsement of Aso Taro, Mori Yoshiro said of …
Koike prepares
The LDP is finalizing the schedule for its election: September 22, the day following the DPJ's reelection of Ozawa Ichiro.While it still looks as if Aso Taro will claim the prize, it appears that his election will not go nearly as smoothly as Mr. Ozawa's.Mainichi reports that Koike Yuriko has expressed her desire to run, …
Aso’s the one for Mori
After months of appearing immune to Aso Taro's relentless courting of his support, Mori Yoshiro said on a TV Asahi program Sunday that he supports Mr. Aso as Prime Minister Fukuda's successor: "Aso's popularity must be used greatly for our party. Many within the party have the 'Aso is next' mood. I too think that."He …
Cracks in the Machimura faction?
Will the Machimura faction, the LDP's largest with eighty-eight members in the two houses of the Diet, be the victim of its own success?Mainichi reported over the weekend that the Machimura faction — still unclear on who it should support as Fukuda Yasuo's successor, may be on the brink of splitting. The reason? As a …
The post-Fukuda landscape remains open — for now
Aso Taro, who has presumably been vying for the LDP presidency since losing it to Fukuda Yasuo in September 2007, was asked about his intentions at a speech on Monday. Like his potential rival, Yosano Kaoru, Mr. Aso demurred, declining to declare what has been openly acknowledged for months.I suppose it would be inappropriate for …
Continue reading The post-Fukuda landscape remains open — for now
The post-Fukuda era looms
Asahi conducted a poll of LDP and DPJ prefectural chapters asking about support for the current party leaders.In the DPJ, Ozawa Ichiro's relationship with the prefectural chapters is secure: forty-four of forty-seven want him to remain as party head to lead the DPJ into the next general election.The news for Fukuda Yasuo, however, is bleak. …
Koike fever?
Within days of Mori Yoshiro's calling the prospect of Korike Yuriko, former defense minister, a "joke," Sankei writes that "Koike fever" is taking hold — even though Ms. Koike claims to share Mr. Mori's assessment of a Koike candidacy.The basis for this "fever" is unclear to me.The examples cited by Sankei? A long speech to …
Tobias S. Harris 