KYODO NEWS



 

Japan's main opposition party the Centrist Reform Alliance on Thursday officially began a brief two-horse race to select its new leader, as the recently established party seeks to rebuild after a crushing defeat in the recent general election.

The new party head is set to be chosen Friday in the race being contested by Junya Ogawa, 54, a former secretary general of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, and Takeshi Shina, 59, the CDPJ's former acting policy chief.

The CRA was established in January and united House of Representatives members of the CDPJ and the Komeito party to achieve a centrist realignment amid what they view as a rightward shift under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Instead, it faced defeat, with its 167 seats before official campaigning falling to 49 in Sunday's election.

Speaking at an event to launch the leadership campaign, Shina said the party "must move forward raising a centrist banner for the sake of democracy and the next generation."

The CRA's loss has made it the smallest main opposition party in postwar Japanese history.

Ogawa referred to cost-of-living pressures on inflation-hit households, saying the party must "rebuild livelihoods" and that it has to "do something about the pervasive uncertainty toward the future spreading in society."

The race will be won by the candidate with the most votes from the party's lower house lawmakers, with no run-off round. The new leader's term will run until the end of March 2027.

The race did not require lawmakers to receive the backing of their colleagues to become a candidate. No lawmakers from the Komeito side came forward to run.

With the founding parties' lawmakers in the House of Councillors yet to merge with their lower house colleagues into the CRA in the wake of the election defeat, both men indicated to reporters that they do not plan to rush a merger.

Shina said there is "no reason to be hasty" on the issue, while Ogawa said the party "must proceed deliberately, clarify its direction and then decide."

The CRA's election strategy has caused internal tensions after Komeito was given priority in the proportional representation list, leading to all 28 of its candidates being elected.

Conversely, the CDPJ side fought in single-member districts and faced a wipeout, with only seven of its candidates including Shina and Ogawa winning in constituency races. Just 21 of the party's lower house lawmakers now originate from the CDPJ.

The party leadership contest comes after CRA co-leaders Yoshihiko Noda and Tetsuo Saito, respective former heads of the CDPJ and Komeito, said Monday they would step down to take responsibility for the election loss.

Komeito, a self-styled pacifist party, ended its 26-year coalition with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in October, shortly after Takaichi became its leader.