June 2010 Democratic Party of Japan leadership election
4 June 2010
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The June 2010 Democratic Party of Japan leadership election was held on 4 June 2010. The election was held to replace outgoing president and Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who resigned on 2 June amid plunging approval ratings and his failure to relocate the Futenma military base.[1]
Finance minister and deputy prime minister Naoto Kan was elected president, defeating backbencher Shinji Tarutoko by 291 votes to 129.[2][3] He was elected Prime Minister by the Diet and formally appointed by Emperor Akihito on 8 June.
Background
The Democratic Party won the August 2009 Japanese general election in a landslide, ushering in the first non-Liberal Democratic-led government since 1994 and marking the first time a party other than the LDP won a parliamentary majority since 1952. Yukio Hatoyama became Prime Minister, and initially recorded approval ratings of over 70%. However, early struggles and scandals implicating Hatoyama and DPJ secretary-general Ichirō Ozawa caused the cabinet's approval to decline to 50% by the new year. The government continued to struggle to reduce the budget deficit and implement their policy pledges. Throughout his tenure, Hatoyama also attempted to negotiate with the United States to relocate the Futenma military base outside of Okinawa, but failed to make progress. He admitted defeat at the end of May, prompting the pacifist Social Democratic Party to withdraw from the governing coalition, damaging the government's legislative position. By this time, Hatoyama's approval rating had fallen to around 20% with disapproval approaching 70%. These factors, combined with the upcoming upper house elections, prompted him to announce his resignation. Ozawa simultaneously resigned as DPJ secretary-general.[4][5][6][7]
Candidates
Finance minister Naoto Kan was understood to be the frontrunner. He secured the backing of most of the party's factions on both left and right, including speculative rivals foreign minister Katsuya Okada and infrastructure and transport minister Seiji Maehara, who endorsed him.[4] The only other candidate to stand was Shinji Tarutoko, chairman of the Diet environment committee, who campaigned on "generational change" and was supported by parts of Ichirō Ozawa's faction.[8][9][10]
| Candidate | Offices held | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Naoto Kan (age 63) Tokyo |
Member of the House of Representatives (1980–) President of the Democratic Party of Japan (1996–99, 2002–04) Minister of Finance (2010–) Deputy Prime Minister of Japan (2009–) | ||
| Shinji Tarutoko (age 49) Osaka Prefecture |
Member of the House of Representatives (1993–2005, 2009–) | ||
Results
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naoto Kan | 291 | 69.3 | |
| Shinji Tarutoko | 129 | 30.7 | |
| Total | 420 | 100.00 | |
| Invalid | 2 | ||
| Turnout | 422 | 99.8 | |
| Eligible | 423 | ||
| Source: DPJ Archive | |||
References
- ^ "Japan's prime minister Yukio Hatoyama resigns". The Guardian. 2 June 2010.
- ^ "Naoto Kan is the new Japanese PM". Deutsche Welle. 4 June 2010.
- ^ "Naoto Kan becomes Japan's new prime minister". BBC. 4 June 2010.
- ^ a b "Naoto Kan new Japanese prime minister". The Australian. 4 June 2010. Archived from the original on 2 April 2011.
- ^ "NW: PM?s approval rating takes slide (1)". Australian Financial Review. 18 January 2010.
- ^ Fackler, Martin (1 June 2010). "Japan's Premier Will Quit as Approval Plummets". New York Times.
- ^ "Japan's prime minister Yukio Hatoyama resigns". The Guardian. 2 June 2010.
- ^ "Finance Minister Naoto Kan seen as Japan front-runner". BBC. 3 June 2010.
- ^ "Transport Minister Maehara Top Pick For Next PM: Nikkei Poll". The Nikkei. 2 June 2010. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011.
- ^ "Factbox: Japan lawmaker Tarutoko to run for ruling party head". Reuters. 3 June 2010.