By John Geddie and Tim Kelly
TOKYO (Reuters) -Shigeru Ishiba was set to be voted in by parliament as Japan’s next prime minister on Tuesday and unveil his cabinet as he seeks to heal party divisions and prepare for an Oct. 27 snap election.
The 67-year-old former defence minister, who won a close-fought contest to lead the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) last week, is virtually assured of being formerly designated premier due to his party’s majority in parliament.
The result of the vote is expected around 1:40 p.m. (0440 GMT) which will then be followed by the Emperor formally appointing Ishiba, and his cabinet, in a ceremony at Tokyo’s Imperial Palace. Ishiba is also expected to hold a late press conference on Tuesday.
The veteran lawmaker, seen as somewhat of an outsider in his party who failed at four previous leadership bids, has already begun picking government and party officials who will contest the upcoming general election with him.
So far those include two rival candidates in the leadership race, Katsunobu Kato as finance minister and Yoshimasa Hayashi to stay on as chief cabinet secretary, a pivotal post that includes the role of top government spokesman, two sources familiar with the appointments told Reuters earlier.
A close Ishiba ally, Takeshi Iwaya, a former defence chief, will take over as foreign minister, while Gen Nakatani will return to the defence ministry, a position he held in 2016, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because they are not authorized to speak publicly, confirming earlier media reports.
Yoji Muto, a former junior minister, will take charge at the economy, trade and industry ministry, a separate source said.
Kato’s appointment to the finance ministry will be closely watched given he served in key positions in former premier Shinzo Abe’s administration, which pursued expansionary fiscal and monetary policies.
The stock index fell nearly 5% on Monday in reaction to a surging yen following Ishiba’s win over Sanae Takaichi, a monetary dove and fiscal expansionist, in Friday’s leadership contest. The index recovered some ground on Tuesday.
Takaichi, a hardline conservative he beat by 215 votes to 194 on Friday in the closest leadership election in almost seven decades, appears to not be in the running for a top position after local media reported she declined a senior party post.
That could make it difficult for Ishiba, a perennial favourite in public opinion polls, to manage a fractious ruling group roiled by scandals.
But despite its troubles, the party which has ruled Japan for most of the post-war era remains likely to hold on to power in the upcoming election given Japan’s weak opposition.
A third of respondents to a weekend poll by the Mainichi newspaper said they supported the LDP, versus 15% for the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan.
More than half of the respondents, including those who supported opposition parties, said they were optimistic about Ishiba’s appointment.