Japanese FM announces candidacy to head ruling party

JAPAN: Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso officially announced his candidacy Monday to replace Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi next month, despite polls that show him trailing far behind the front-runner, Kyodo News agency reported.

Aso is one of three likely candidates in the campaign for Sept. 20 balloting to pick a new president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party - a position that virtually guarantees the winner the premiership because the LDP controls Parliament.

Aso made the announcement during an LDP faction meeting ahead of his scheduled policy speech later Monday, Kyodo said.

Koizumi, who took power in April 2001, has vowed to step down when his term as party president expires in September. He has not yet publicly thrown his support behind a particular candidate. In his announcement, Aso, a conservative, was expected to map out his policies, including economic and fiscal measures and educational reform.

Recent polls have portrayed Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe, who is expected to officially announce his candidacy early next month, as the front-runner in the race, with a comfortable lead over Aso and Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki.

In a survey released Monday by the business newspaper Nihon Keizai, 44 percent of the 891 voters who responded to the Aug. 18-21 telephone poll favored Abe, with 6.4 percent supporting Tanigaki and 5.5 percent backing Aso.

Despite the tough prospects, Aso said he will hold out to the end.

"You never know the results until the ballot box is closed," Aso told a group of reporters outside his residence earlier Monday.

Tokyo, Monday, AP