Prime Minister Fumio Kishida often speaks about how his ability to listen attentively to the public is one of his strong points.
But Wednesday¡¯s Cabinet reshuffle and Liberal Democratic Party senior leadership changes reflect a leader who appears to be listening more to intraparty concerns about factional politics and for the sound of potential rivals in the September 2024 LDP presidential race.
¡°The Cabinet reshuffle and party leadership changes can be characterized as Kishida¡¯s ingenuity in trying to ensure his re-election in next fall¡¯s presidential election,¡± said Kentaro Yamamoto, a politics professor at Hokkai-Gakuen University. ¡°There were two key points in the (selection) process: not to make enemies within the party, and not to give a chance to a potential successor.¡±
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