Who is Japans designated Prime Minister Fumio Kishida | DW News

Japan's ruling party lawmakers voted on Wednesday to elect a new leader, with Fumio Kishida announced as the winner. Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) members were voting to replace Yoshihide Suga, who announced he was stepping down from the leadership position after drawing intense criticism over his handling of the pandemic during the Olympic Games. The new leader will almost certainly become the next prime minister of the country. Kishida should be approved by the parliament within days, and will then contest elections as the leader of the LDP. The LDP is expected to retain its majority in the powerful lower house of the parliament during general elections in November. The election was being closely watched, with race looking particularly tight between the two lead candidates. A soft-spoken former foreign minister who hails from the Hiroshima family of politicians, Kishida had long targeted the top job. This was his second time running for the position of leadership, after having lost out to Suga