The next leader of Japan's ruling party, and by extension, the prime minister, will be either former defense chief Shigeru Ishiba, rising star and youngest contender Shinjiro Koizumi or economic security minister Sanae Takaichi, according to a Kyodo News tally and analysis on Wednesday.With the three contenders running neck and neck in the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election, no clear winner is expected to emerge in the first round of voting on Friday. The final victor will be decided in a runoff between the top two candidates.Whoever secures a majority of the 736 votes -- 368 …READ FULL ARTICLE
