On Friday, former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi made clear that he will call a snap election as soon as possible if chosen as the Liberal Democratic Party*s next leader in the most crowded presidential election in the history of the party.

※In order for the party to genuinely transform, we mustn*t choose a leader who (only) advocates for reform, but rather one who can overwhelmingly expedite that reform,§ he told a news conference Friday to announce his first bid for the party presidency.

※I would like to seek the people*s trust in my plan to change the country,§ Koizumi said, voicing his sense of urgency about the current state of the country and its politics.