LDP Factions Starting To Throw Support Behind Suga (Nikkei)

The Nikkei reports that "Japan's next prime minister is to be elected in a special session of parliament to be held as early as Sept. 17, according to plans within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. Following Shinzo Abe's decision to step down, the LDP has begun preparations to vote for its next leader by Sept. 15. The party's General Council will meet Tuesday to decide how and when the process will take place. The LDP's powerful factions are starting to throw their support behind Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, Abe's right-hand man. Though he trails in voter polls behind such other likely candidates as Abe rival Shigeru Ishiba and Defense Minister Taro Kono, Suga is seen as a steady hand who can maintain policymaking continuity and spare Japan from another succession of short-lived governments like those before Abe."