Japan's ruling LDP to hold leadership election on Oct. 4

Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party will hold its leadership election on Oct. 4 to choose a successor to outgoing Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, its election panel said Tuesday, with some lawmakers already announcing their candidacy or ready to do so.The campaigning period will kick off Sept. 22, the panel said. The new party president will be elected by all 295 lawmakers together with rank-and-file party members, whose ballots will be converted into another 295 votes.The next presidential election was originally scheduled to take place in 2027 but was brought forward after Ishiba's sud…READ FULL ARTICLE