Taro Kono, Japan's minister in charge of fighting COVID-19 and a top choice of voters for Japanese prime minister, may also pick up the backing of a popular ruling party heavyweight in the race for party leader, broadcaster TV Asahi said on Monday.
TOKYO - Taro Kono, Japan's minister in charge of fighting COVID-19 and a top choice of voters for Japanese prime minister, may also pick up the backing of a popular ruling party heavyweight in the race for party leader, broadcaster TV Asahi said on Monday.
Former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba, who is popular among LDP grassroots members, is considering backing Kono instead of running himself, TV Asahi reported, without citing sources or further details - a move that could significantly increase Kono's chances of winning. Two public opinion polls over the past few days have said Kono is the top choice of voters to assume the premiership, with 23% telling the Yomiuri Shimbun daily in a poll published Monday that they favoured him.A former foreign and defence minister, the 58-year-old Kono, educated at Georgetown University and a fluent English speaker, has built a popular following among young voters with an active social media presence in two languages and 2.3 million followers on his Japanese page alone.
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