According to reports from Japan's Kyodo News and NHK, on August 8 local time, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) of Japan held a meeting of its parliamentary members in both houses of the Diet, deciding to initiate an unusual procedure within the party to confirm whether to hold an early presidential election. In response, LDP President and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reiterated his willingness to continue governing on the 9th.

At the Japanese House of Councillors election held on July 20, the ruling coalition of the LDP and Komeito suffered a "historic defeat," losing many seats and failing to maintain a majority, leading to calls within the LDP for Ishiba to step down as leader.

On August 9 local time, Ishiba held a press conference in Nagasaki City, reiterating his intention to remain in office, and when talking about the Japan-US tariff negotiations, he said: "There are daily policy issues that must be resolved, and I will do my best to address them."

Regarding the calls within the LDP for him to resign earlier, Ishiba said: "Various opinions have emerged. I will take into account the current summary of the House of Councillors election being conducted within the party." When asked if there was a need for personnel adjustments at the top of the party, he responded: "I have not considered it at this time."

On August 9 local time, Ishiba held a press conference in Nagasaki City, reiterating his intention to remain in office. Screenshot from video

At the LDP members' general meeting on the 8th, participants, considering the disastrous results of the House of Councillors election, called for an early presidential election, and the meeting decided to entrust the presidential election management committee with the responsibility of determining the feasibility of the proposal.

Ishiba was elected as the LDP president in September last year, with his term ending in September 2027. The report pointed out that if it is ultimately decided to hold an early election, it would effectively be an announcement of Ishiba's resignation, placing him in a difficult situation.

Ishiba expressed apology for the loss in the House of Councillors election at the meeting, while reiterating his desire to remain in office and to fully deal with matters such as the Japan-US agreement on tariff measures.

According to the LDP charter, holding a special presidential election requires the support of more than half of the 295 Diet members and 47 prefectural association representatives, totaling 342 people. So far, there has never been a case where a special presidential election was held without the president voluntarily resigning, and specific rules have also not been determined yet.

The LDP Presidential Election Management Committee's Fujisawa Kazuo stated that considering the LDP executive branch plans to complete the summary of the House of Councillors election by the end of this month, they will consider whether to hold an early presidential election from next month and study how to confirm the opinions of the members.

Ishiba said after the meeting that: "I will carefully listen to, refer to, and value the various opinions put forward. It is necessary to proceed with related work based on a thorough summary of the House of Councillors election. The key is to properly handle all matters according to the party charter."

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7536743664261939712/

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