By Takayuki Tanaka

8:00 JST, September 7, 2024

Whoever wins the Liberal Democratic Party’s Sept. 27 presidential election, they will take over the tasks and burdens currently shouldered by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. So it is meaningful to reflect on what Kishida has done, or failed to do, to anticipate the future.

Kishida will have served in office for almost three years when he steps down in early October after his successor is elected. This seems to be a short term, but it exceeds the average tenure of Japanese prime ministers, which is nearly 2½ years, since the long-dominant LDP was established in 1955.

Since 2021, the Kishida Cabinet has beefed up the government’s national security policy through such steps as drastically increasing the defense budget and paving the way for Japan to have the capability to strike enemy bases. He has done well in diplomacy by fortifying Japan-U.S. ties through a close relationship with U.S. President Joe Biden and improving relations with South Korea. The Japanese economy has been relatively stable under the Kishida administration, even though there has been some economic turmoil: price hikes, a sudden stock price plunge, and the diminishing value of the yen.

Even so, the public has refused to give his Cabinet a passing grade, as seen in low approval ratings in opinion surveys, due to the LDP’s money scandals. Major factions of the LDP violated the law and failed to report a portion of the income from their fundraising parties in order to make hidden slush funds. Even worse, the management of the aftermath of the scandals was too slow and too clumsy. Kishida was harshly criticized for not........

© The Japan News