Shigeru Ishiba’s determination to lead Japan has never been in question, and now the veteran MP is poised to achieve that goal at the fifth time of asking after winning the race to lead his country’s ruling Liberal Democratic party (LDP) on Friday.
The 67-year-old will be installed as Japan’s new prime minister on Tuesday by the LDP-controlled parliament.
Having seen off a challenge from his rightwing rival, Sanae Takaichi, Ishiba will be expected to use his popularity among voters to boost the party’s waning fortunes after months of scandal and infighting.
In a victory speech at the party’s headquarters, he said the outgoing prime minister, Fumio Kishida, had “decided to let the LDP be reborn and win back the public’s trust. We must all pull together to do that.”
A member of Japan’s tiny Christian population, Ishiba had described his candidacy for LDP president as the “final battle” of his career, having failed in four previous attempts to lead the party.
He now faces other challenges on several fronts: voter anger over the cost-of-living crisis, low levels of public trust in “money politics”, and growing threats to regional stability from China and North Korea.
Despite his victory on Friday, the softly spoken Ishiba, who listens to 1970s pop music and builds model warplanes, trains and ships in his free time, has become a voice of dissent inside a party that has drifted to the right over the past two decades.
Instead, he draws his support from the party’s rank-and file, whose votes helped propel him to victory on Friday.
Ishiba was alone among the nine candidates for the LDP presidency in calling for a post-Fukushima shift away from nuclear power to renewable energy and supports legislation that would allow women to become reigning empresses, a move opposed by many LDP lawmakers. He has also criticised the party for resisting public pressure to allow married couples to use separate surnames.
On the economic front, Ishiba wants to boost wages and has voiced support for exempting some items from the 10% consumption (sales) tax to help people on lower incomes.
He is unlikely to have time for his pursuits outside politics. He reportedly reads three books a day, preferring that to mingling with colleagues – some of whom he has alienated in his role as chief critic of the party’s policy direction in recent years.
“I have undoubtedly hurt many people’s feelings, caused unpleasant experiences, and made many suffer. I sincerely apologise for all of my shortcomings,” he said in an address to LDP lawmakers on Friday.
A former defence minister who entered parliament in 1986 after a short career in banking, Ishida was sidelined by Kishida. But Ishiba has never been far from the political fray, with media appearances, social media posts and on YouTube, where the married father of two daughters shares his thoughts on everything from Japan’s falling birthrate to ramen with his 16,000-plus followers.
He is not above self-deprecation, poking fun at his sometimes awkward manner and admitting to being a “military geek”.
“I will do my utmost to believe in the people, to speak the truth with courage and sincerity, and to make this country a safe and secure place where everyone can live with a smile again,” Ishiba said in a short speech after his victory.
First, though, he must put a smile back on the faces of his embattled LDP colleagues.
Reuters contributed to this report.