58% of Japanese Voters Say Next Prime Minister Should Not Follow Abe or Suga's Policies... Kono Leads in Approval Ratings

Asahi Shimbun, Results of Telephone Poll Conducted on 11th-12th

▲Taro Kono, Minister in charge of Administrative Reform, considered a leading candidate for the next Prime Minister [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] More than half of Japanese voters believe that the next prime minister should pursue a different political approach than former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe or current Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

According to a telephone survey conducted by Asahi Shimbun on Japanese voters from the 11th to the 12th, 58% of respondents said they would prefer the next prime minister not to follow the policies of Abe or Suga.

On the other hand, 28% responded that it would be better to continue their line.

Following Abe, who served for about 7 years and 9 months consecutively, Suga took office with a pledge to succeed Abe’s policies, but Japanese voters appear to have grown weary of their governance.

The most preferred candidate for the next prime minister, as in other media surveys, was Administrative Reform Minister Taro Kono.

When asked which of five politicians?who have either declared their intention to run or are considered potential candidates for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) presidency, which effectively decides the Japanese prime minister?would be suitable as party president, 33% of respondents chose Kono.

Former LDP Secretary-General Shigeru Ishiba, who has not yet clearly stated his candidacy, ranked second with 16%, followed by former LDP Policy Research Council Chairman Fumio Kishida at 14%.

Former Minister of Internal Affairs Sanae Takaichi received 8%, and Acting LDP Secretary-General Seiko Noda got 3%. Among these five, 20% responded that none were suitable candidates.

▲Takaiichi Sanae, former Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications and one of the candidates for the next Prime Minister [Image source=Yonhap News]

Analyzing only the responses from LDP supporters, Kono received 42%, Kishida 19%, Ishiba 13%, Takaichi 12%, and Noda 1%.

Among independents with no party affiliation, preferences were Kono 28%, Ishiba 17%, Kishida 11%, Takaichi 6%, and Noda 5%.

Support for the Suga Cabinet stood at 30%, showing little change from last month’s survey (28%).

LDP support rose by 5 percentage points to 37%.

After Prime Minister Suga announced his resignation, support for the ruling party recovered to a level similar to December last year (38%).

The proportion of respondents who said they would vote for the LDP in the upcoming general election’s proportional representation segment increased by 8 percentage points to 43%.

Support for the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party fell by 1 percentage point to 5%, and those intending to vote for it in proportional representation dropped by 4 percentage points to 11%.

Asahi interpreted that the LDP’s presidential election movement has been a positive factor for the party, while the Constitutional Democratic Party’s presence appears to have diminished.