Ishiba's last stand? Japan's LDP in turmoil as Sanseito surge erodes PM's grip on power
Japan 's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has vowed to remain in office despite a stinging electoral rebuke that plunged his ruling coalition into fresh turmoil.
The humiliating setback, confirmed
late on Sunday , has fuelled doubts about Ishiba's leadership as rivals within his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) circle and stoked anxiety in the world's
fourth-largest economy , already reeling from rising prices, mounting security threats and the disruptive effects of US President
Donald Trump 's aggressive tariff regime.
In a sombre appearance on public broadcaster NHK two hours after polls closed on Sunday, Ishiba 'solemnly' conceded the 'harsh result'. 'It is a difficult situation that must be taken very humbly and seriously,' he said. Pressed on he intended to continue as Japan's leader, he replied: 'That's right'.
But Ishiba's leadership of the party and the country appears increasingly precarious. Signs of discontent have flared within the LDP since the vote, with former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi openly signalling her readiness to challenge the prime minister.
Addressing supporters in Nara prefecture on Friday, Takaichi declared the party was 'under scrutiny' and warned it might require drastic change to resurrect its fortunes.
Sanae Takaichi speaks before an LDP run-off election in September last year. The ex-economic security minister has been positioning herself as a possible successor to Ishiba. Photo: AP
'I have made up my mind in my own way,' Jiji Press quoted her as saying. 'I will once again firmly reset the party's backbone. I promise to fight for that.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
6 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Insta360's Antigravity challenges DJI with 8K 360-degree drone
The consumer drone industry is facing new competition from China, as Antigravity – a new brand from omnidirectional camera specialist Insta360, is set to unveil its first product. Advertisement Scheduled to be unveiled in August, the unmanned aerial vehicle weighs less than 249 grams and features a built-in 360-degree camera with 8K resolution, according to the company. That would make it the industry's first '360 drone': until now, users have resorted to attaching full-degree cameras to their flying machines. According to Antigravity's website, which launched on Monday, the new drone supports real-time data transmission and allows users to adjust shooting parameters during flights. After years of quiet development, the vehicle aims to cater to both experts and beginners, as well as 'everyone in between'. Antigravity, known as Yingling in Chinese, said that the industry had hit a bottleneck, with some users feeling 'tired of drones that looked good on paper but felt lifeless in the air'. A DJI store in Beijing. The company is set to face new competition from Insta360's new drone brand. Photo: EPA-EFE While Antigravity did not disclose its location, the company said it was incubated by Shenzhen-based Insta360 'in collaboration with third parties', and developed by 'a global team of engineers, designers, and creators'.
South China Morning Post
6 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's Law Society swoops down on entire floor of offices at The Center at half price
The Law Society of Hong Kong has bought an entire floor of offices in what was formerly the world's most expensive tower at a 50 per cent discount, the latest among astute investors who are picking up property in the city at bargain prices. Advertisement The Law Society paid HK$345 million (US$44 million), or HK$14,000 per sq ft, for 24,980 sq ft (2,320 square metres) on the 26th floor of The Center from Gale Well Group. The property in the Central district was handed over to the Law Society on July 25, according to the Land Registry. The purchase price was half of the HK$693 million that Gale Well paid in 2021, when its founder and CEO Jacinto Tong Man-leung bought the property from the late Ma Ah-muk. Ma, dubbed Hong Kong's Minibus King, passed away in March last year. The Law Society is still gathering views from its members for the design of the office floor and has not decided on the date for moving in, a member said. An interview with property investment firm Gale Well Group's vice chairman and CEO Jacinto Tong Man-leung on February 25, 2025. Photo: Jonathan Wong The Center, a 73-storey office tower, was sold in 2018 for a record HK$40.2 billion (US$5.2 billion) by the city's wealthiest man, Li Ka-shing, to a group of 10 local tycoons in what was then the world's priciest property deal. Not long after the transaction, Hong Kong's economy was driven into a slump by six months of anti-government protests and three years of the Covid-19 pandemic. Advertisement
South China Morning Post
6 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong audit watchdog warns of quality risks amid undercutting and tight deadlines
The head of Hong Kong's auditing watchdog has raised concerns that some auditors are accepting jobs from listed companies at cheaper rates and too close to reporting deadlines, warning that this could affect the quality of their work. The Accounting and Financial Reporting Council (AFRC) said that 17 per cent of the 2,631 Hong Kong-listed companies changed auditors last year. The AFRC also said that it had randomly checked the work of 16 auditing firms that were replaced. The regulator found that of these 16 firms, 13 had received lower fees compared with the previous auditors, while 12 had quality issues and urged them to make improvements. 'Many of these audits were conducted under tight timelines due to late changes in auditor appointments, close to the reporting deadline,' said CEO Janey Lai Chui-pik at a media briefing on the annual audit quality review on Tuesday. 'These practices threaten both the independence of auditors and the quality of audits.' Accounting and Financial Reporting Council chairman David Sun and CEO Janey Lai at the regulator's office at Two Taikoo Place. Photo: Enoch Yiu One of the main reasons listed companies changed auditors was cheaper auditing fees, as existing auditors refused to give discounts. 'After the two sides have lengthy discussions and still cannot reach an agreement on cheaper auditing fees, a listed company usually finds a cheaper auditor just one or two months before the auditing deadline,' she said. 'In one case, a company changed its auditor three times in a year.'
