Overview

• Agriculture Minister Shinjirō Koizumi announced his bid and vowed to reunify the party while prioritizing measures against rising prices.
• Toshimitsu Motegi, now a declared candidate, said forming a coalition should come before electoral seat coordination and rejected an immediate Lower House dissolution if he becomes prime minister.
• Motegi signaled skepticism toward a quick consumption tax cut and proposed large-scale local grants to support incomes and counter inflation.
• Upper House LDP chair Masashi Matsuyama endorsed Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi, citing his extensive cabinet experience.
• Four contenders — Sanae Takaichi, Koizumi, Hayashi, and Takayuki Kobayashi — plan campaign launch press conferences this week, with formal filings due Sept. 22 and voting set for Oct. 4; the CDP is urging opposition parties to rally behind Yoshihiko Noda in the subsequent prime-ministerial vote.